MIAMI, FL. Inspectors visiting South Florida restaurants during the week of August 4 documented more than 100 high-severity violations across 15 facilities in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, with a single Miami teppanyaki restaurant accumulating 11 high-severity citations in one visit, the most of any location in the region that week.
The Worst of the Week
Aoki Teppanyaki on North Kendall Drive drew 11 high-severity and 5 intermediate violations. The citations included no person in charge present or performing duties, no employee health policy, inadequate handwashing facilities, improper handwashing technique, food from unapproved or unknown sources, inadequate shell stock identification, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and food not cooked to required minimum temperatures.
That combination, an absent manager, unverified food sources, and no handwashing infrastructure, represents a compounding failure. Each problem makes the others worse.
Mike's China Beach on 47th Street in Miami Beach recorded 10 high-severity violations. Inspectors cited the restaurant for food from unapproved sources, inadequate shell stock records, parasite destruction procedures not followed, food contact surfaces not properly sanitized, food not cooked to required minimum temperatures, and improper use of time as a public health control. No employee health policy was documented, and handwashing technique was cited as inadequate.
Miami Beach's tourist corridor produced two of the week's worst performers. Master's Deli Pizzeria on Alton Road logged 9 high-severity violations, including food contaminated by chemical, physical, or biological hazards, food from unapproved sources, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, and no employee health policy. Inspectors also cited the Alton Road location for inadequate shell stock records and improperly cleaned food contact surfaces.
S 47 Lounge on Brickell Avenue accumulated 9 high-severity violations. The Brickell address, one of Miami's highest-traffic dining and nightlife corridors, was cited for food in poor condition, food not cooked to required minimum temperatures, toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, inadequate shell stock records, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Yume LLC on South Dixie Highway in Cutler Bay drew 9 high-severity citations, including two separate toxic substance violations: chemicals improperly stored or labeled, and toxic substances improperly identified, stored, or used. Inspectors also cited the location for food from unapproved sources, parasite destruction procedures not followed, and no employee health policy.
Across the Counties
In Hialeah, Tropical Cafeteria on East 9th Street was cited for 6 high-severity violations, among them toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, parasite destruction procedures not followed, food not cooked to required minimum temperatures, and inadequate handwashing by food employees.
Crafty Crab Restaurant on NE 8th Street in Homestead drew 4 high-severity violations, including no allergen awareness demonstrated and inadequate shell stock identification. For a restaurant whose menu centers on shellfish, the absence of shellfish traceability records is a direct gap in the facility's ability to respond if a customer becomes ill.
In Coral Gables, two restaurants on the same inspection sweep produced sharply different totals. Daniel's Miami on San Ignacio Avenue recorded 8 high-severity violations, including an employee not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate handwashing facilities, food from unapproved sources, and toxic substances improperly identified, stored, or used. Tina in the Gables on South Le Jeune Road, also in Coral Gables, drew 3 high-severity violations, the lowest count among the week's flagged facilities.
Sichuan Fish Restaurant on NE 163rd Street in North Miami Beach was cited for 8 high-severity violations, including no person in charge present, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, food from unapproved sources, food in poor condition, and no allergen awareness demonstrated.
GheeMiami on SW 72nd Place in Kendall logged 8 high-severity violations, including no person in charge, inadequate handwashing facilities, food not cooked to required minimum temperatures, and time as a public health control not properly used.
Coyo Taco on NW 2nd Avenue in Miami's Wynwood neighborhood drew 8 high-severity violations. The popular taco destination was cited for no employee health policy, an employee not reporting illness symptoms, food not cooked to required minimum temperatures, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled.
In Broward County, DiSalvo's Pizza on North 46th Avenue in Hollywood recorded 8 high-severity violations, including no person in charge, food from unapproved sources, toxic substances improperly identified, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. Temak House Florida on West Hillsboro Boulevard in Deerfield Beach drew 4 high-severity violations, including no person in charge and an employee not reporting illness symptoms.
What These Violations Mean
The most frequently cited high-severity violation this week was improper handwashing, appearing in some form at Aoki Teppanyaki, Mike's China Beach, Master's Deli Pizzeria, S 47 Lounge, Tropical Cafeteria, Crafty Crab Restaurant, Coyo Taco, GheeMiami, Daniel's Miami, DiSalvo's Pizza, and Tina in the Gables. Handwashing failures matter because hands are the primary transfer route for norovirus, E. coli, and Salmonella. An inadequate handwashing facility, cited at Aoki Teppanyaki, GheeMiami, and Daniel's Miami, means the infrastructure to wash hands properly does not exist, regardless of employee intent.
Food from unapproved or unknown sources was documented at Aoki Teppanyaki, Mike's China Beach, Master's Deli Pizzeria, Yume LLC, Sichuan Fish Restaurant, DiSalvo's Pizza, and Daniel's Miami. When food enters a restaurant outside the licensed supply chain, it bypasses federal inspection. If someone gets sick, investigators cannot trace the product back to its origin, because there is no paper trail to follow.
Several facilities, including Master's Deli Pizzeria and Sichuan Fish Restaurant, were cited because employees were not reporting illness symptoms. This is the violation most directly linked to multi-victim outbreaks. A single sick food worker handling ready-to-eat food can expose dozens of customers before any symptom is visible in the food itself.
The dual toxic substance citations at Yume LLC in Cutler Bay stand out. Improperly stored or labeled chemicals near food service areas create a contamination risk that is immediate rather than cumulative. A mislabeled bottle of cleaner mistaken for a food ingredient does not require repeated exposure to cause harm.
The Longer Record
DiSalvo's Pizza in Hollywood carries state license number SEA1609958, a sequence that indicates a substantially older operating history than most facilities on this week's list. A restaurant with a long inspection record accumulating 8 high-severity violations in a single week, including no person in charge and food from unapproved sources, tells a different story than a newer location encountering its first serious citations.
Temak House Florida in Deerfield Beach also carries an older license number, SEA1625815, placing it among the longer-established facilities flagged this week. The combination of no person in charge and an employee not reporting illness symptoms at an established location suggests those violations are not the result of inexperience.
Several facilities on this week's list carry newer license numbers in the SEA233 range, including Aoki Teppanyaki, Crafty Crab Restaurant, Yume LLC, GheeMiami, Coyo Taco, and Daniel's Miami, indicating more recently licensed operations. Aoki Teppanyaki's 11 high-severity violations at a relatively new location, including the absence of a person in charge and no employee health policy, suggests baseline compliance systems were not established when the restaurant opened.
Coyo Taco's Wynwood location draws a heavily tourist and weekend-traffic crowd. Eight high-severity violations at a high-volume destination, including an employee not reporting illness symptoms and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked menu items, means customers ordering from that menu during the inspection week had no written notice that certain foods carried elevated risk.
