OCALA, FL. When a state inspector walked into Say Taco at 10 NE 1st Street on April 29, they found toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled near food, no written employee health policy, and workers who were not reporting illness symptoms — eight high-severity violations in a single visit, with two intermediate violations on top of that. The restaurant was not closed.
What Inspectors Found
The chemical storage violation sits at the top of the list because it carries the most immediate and acute risk. Cleaning agents and other toxic substances stored near or alongside food can contaminate ingredients directly, with no cooking step to neutralize the hazard before it reaches a customer's plate.
Alongside that, the inspector found that employees were not reporting illness symptoms and that no written health policy existed to require them to do so. Those two violations are functionally the same failure documented twice: a sick worker with no obligation to stay home and no system in place to stop them from handling food.
Food contact surfaces, the cutting boards, prep tables, and countertops that touch everything served to customers, were not properly cleaned or sanitized. The inspector also cited improper handwashing technique, meaning that even when workers washed their hands, they were not doing so in a way that removes pathogens.
Food was found in poor condition, mislabeled, or adulterated. The inspector also noted the absence of a consumer advisory for raw or undercooked items, meaning customers had no way to know they were ordering something that carried an elevated risk.
No person in charge was present or performing supervisory duties at the time of the inspection.
What These Violations Mean
The combination of no employee health policy and no illness reporting is one of the most dangerous configurations a restaurant can have. Norovirus, which causes the majority of foodborne illness outbreaks in the United States, spreads most efficiently when a sick food worker handles ready-to-eat food without restrictions. A written policy is the mechanism that tells workers they must report symptoms and stay home. Without it, the system relies entirely on individual judgment, and CDC data consistently shows that gap produces outbreaks.
Improperly cleaned food contact surfaces compound that risk. Bacterial biofilms, layers of pathogens that adhere to surfaces and resist ordinary cleaning, can form within 24 hours on improperly sanitized prep areas. When those surfaces are used to prepare food, the contamination transfers directly to the plate.
The toxic chemical violation is distinct from the others because it does not require a biological process to cause harm. A chemical contaminant does not need time to multiply. If an improperly labeled or stored chemical comes into contact with food at Say Taco, a customer could be poisoned by the first bite.
The absence of a person in charge during the inspection is not a paperwork problem. Research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that restaurants without active managerial control accumulate critical violations at three times the rate of those with engaged supervision. Every other violation on this list is more likely to occur when no one is watching.
The Longer Record
The April 29 inspection is not an isolated event. State records show Say Taco has been inspected 43 times and has accumulated 388 total violations across its history. The pattern of high-severity findings is consistent and recent.
In November 2025, the restaurant drew 8 high-severity and 4 intermediate violations, a nearly identical violation profile to the April 2026 inspection. In May 2025, an inspection found 9 high-severity violations and 1 intermediate, serious enough to require a follow-up visit days later. In November 2024, a routine inspection turned up 9 high-severity and 3 intermediate violations. In September 2024, the count was 7 high-severity and 2 intermediate.
That is four separate inspections across roughly 20 months, each producing between 7 and 9 high-severity violations.
The restaurant has one prior emergency closure on record, ordered in May 2019 after an inspector found flies. The closure and reopening both occurred on the same day.
The inspections in between those high-violation visits tell a different story. In May 2025, two follow-up inspections found zero high-severity violations and zero intermediate violations, suggesting the restaurant can meet state standards when required to demonstrate compliance under scrutiny. Those clean inspections are separated by months of record-level findings.
Open for Business
State inspectors documented 8 high-severity violations at Say Taco on April 29, 2026. Toxic chemicals were improperly stored near food. Workers had no policy requiring them to report illness. The person responsible for overseeing food safety was not present or not doing the job.
The restaurant was not closed.