MIAMI, FL. Two Miami restaurants each accumulated 12 high-severity violations during a single inspection week, and one of them was a hotel dining operation on Biscayne Boulevard catering to tourists in the heart of Midtown, according to state records for the period of August 18 through August 24, 2026.
Across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties, inspectors flagged 15 restaurants for three or more high-severity violations. Thirteen of those facilities were in Miami-Dade alone.
The Violations
Rinconcito Latino Mixto on NW 10th Avenue drew 12 high-severity and 5 intermediate violations. Inspectors cited no person in charge performing duties, no employee health policy, inadequate handwashing by employees, inadequate handwashing facilities, improper washing technique, food from unapproved sources, missing shellfish traceability records, and food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized.
That is eight distinct high-severity categories at a single location in a single visit. The simultaneous absence of a functioning manager, a health policy, and adequate handwashing infrastructure represents a compounding failure at every layer of food safety oversight.
AC Hotel Miami Midtown at 3400 Biscayne Blvd matched that count with 12 high-severity violations of its own. The hotel's food operation was cited for no person in charge, no employee health policy, inadequate handwashing facilities, improper handwashing technique, food from unapproved sources, missing shellfish records, unsanitized food contact surfaces, and food not cooked to the required minimum temperature.
The last citation matters for a hotel dining room serving cooked proteins to guests who did not choose a raw-preparation menu item. Undercooking is among the most direct routes from kitchen to illness.
Toro Toro at 100 Chopin Plaza, a downtown Miami restaurant in a high-traffic tourist corridor, tallied 11 high-severity violations. Inspectors noted no employee health policy, inadequate handwashing by employees, food from unapproved sources, food in poor condition or adulterated, missing shellfish records, parasite destruction procedures not followed, unsanitized food contact surfaces, and food not cooked to minimum temperature.
The parasite destruction citation at Toro Toro is significant given the restaurant's menu profile. Fish served without verified freezing or cooking protocols can harbor Anisakis and tapeworm larvae.
El Berrinche at 13911 SW 42nd St recorded 11 high-severity violations including a citation that not every facility on this week's list received: employees not reporting symptoms of illness. Alongside no health policy, inadequate and improperly used handwashing facilities, food from unapproved sources, food in poor condition, missing shellfish records, and parasite destruction failures, the illness-reporting gap creates a direct transmission pathway.
Panaderia Colombiana Mi Cali on W 60th Street in Hialeah also hit 11 high-severity violations, the most of any bakery-style operation in this week's data. Inspectors found no person in charge, no health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate handwashing by employees, improper handwashing technique, missing shellfish records, unsanitized food contact surfaces, and time-as-a-public-health-control procedures not properly followed.
Mochima Bistro at 11030 SW 184th St in southwest Miami drew 10 high-severity violations. The record shows no person in charge, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness, inadequate handwashing facilities, improper technique, food from unapproved sources, missing shellfish records, and improper use of time as a public health control.
Nueva San Salvador Restaurant #4 on NW 22nd Avenue collected 10 high-severity violations, including employees not reporting illness symptoms and employees not washing hands adequately, alongside inadequate handwashing facilities, improper technique, missing shellfish records, unsanitized surfaces, and time control failures.
Las Columnas Restaurant in Doral was cited for 10 high-severity violations, with inspectors documenting no person in charge, no health policy, employees not reporting illness, inadequate handwashing facilities, improper technique, missing shellfish records, parasite destruction failures, and unsanitized food contact surfaces.
Tap42 at 11735 Sherry Lane in Kendall drew 10 high-severity violations including food from unapproved sources, food not cooked to minimum temperature, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, and no person in charge. Serving undercooked food with no advisory posted and no manager present during the inspection is a combination the records show repeatedly this week.
South China Restaurant on Flamingo Road in Cooper City was Broward County's entry in this week's list, cited for 10 high-severity violations. Inspectors found no health policy, employees not reporting illness, inadequate handwashing facilities, improper technique, food from unapproved sources, food in poor condition, missing shellfish records, and parasite destruction procedures not followed.
Pollo Riko on W 60th Street in Miami drew 9 high-severity violations and no intermediate violations. The facility was cited for no health policy, food from unapproved sources, food in poor condition, unsanitized food contact surfaces, improper time-as-control procedures, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, and two separate chemical storage citations: toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, and toxic substances improperly identified, stored, or used.
Akashi Japanese Restaurant on S Dixie Highway in South Miami drew 5 high-severity violations, among them toxic chemicals improperly stored and improper sewage or waste water disposal, an intermediate violation that puts fecal contamination risk throughout the facility.
Five Spice Vietnamese Pho and Sushi Bar on NE 8th Street in Homestead was cited for 5 high-severity violations including parasite destruction procedures not followed and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. A sushi operation serving fish without verified parasite destruction and without notifying customers is a compounded risk at a single menu category.
Palm Beach County's sole entry, Schooner's Market on N Highway A1A in Jupiter, drew 3 high-severity violations: food contact surfaces not properly cleaned, food not cooked to minimum temperature, and toxic chemicals improperly stored. The A1A location puts it in a high-traffic coastal corridor.
New Dragon Restaurant on W 16th Avenue in Hialeah drew 2 high-severity violations, the lowest count among this week's flagged facilities, but one of those was toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled alongside no employee health policy.
What These Violations Mean
The illness-reporting gap documented at El Berrinche, Panaderia Colombiana Mi Cali, Mochima Bistro, Nueva San Salvador Restaurant #4, Las Columnas, South China Restaurant, and Tap42 is the violation type most directly linked to multi-victim outbreaks. When a food worker with Norovirus or Salmonella continues working without reporting symptoms, every plate that leaves that kitchen is a potential exposure event. A written employee health policy is not paperwork: it is the mechanism that gives a sick employee permission and instruction to stay home.
The food-from-unapproved-sources citations at Rinconcito Latino Mixto, AC Hotel Miami Midtown, El Berrinche, Mochima Bistro, Nueva San Salvador Restaurant #4, South China Restaurant, Tap42, and Pollo Riko mean those facilities were receiving ingredients that bypassed USDA or FDA inspection. If a customer becomes ill after eating at one of those restaurants, tracing the contamination back to its source becomes substantially harder, or impossible.
Parasite destruction failures at Toro Toro, El Berrinche, Las Columnas, South China Restaurant, and Five Spice are not theoretical. Fish served without verified freezing protocols can carry Anisakis larvae. The FDA requires that fish intended for raw or undercooked service be frozen to specific temperatures for specific durations before it reaches a customer's plate. Without documentation that this step occurred, there is no verification it did.
The dual chemical violations at Pollo Riko and the chemical storage citations at Akashi and New Dragon represent a different category of risk entirely. Improperly stored cleaning chemicals near food preparation areas can contaminate food directly, and mislabeled chemicals can be applied to surfaces at wrong concentrations or in wrong contexts.
The Longer Record
The data this week includes facilities across a wide range of inspection histories. South China Restaurant carries identifier SEA1612266, a substantially lower number than most other facilities on this list, suggesting a longer operating history in the state database. It accumulated 10 high-severity violations in a single visit despite that extended record, including food from unapproved sources and parasite destruction failures.
Several facilities show identifiers in the SEA233 range, suggesting more recent entries in the inspection system. Mochima Bistro, El Berrinche, Nueva San Salvador Restaurant #4, and Las Columnas all fall in that range and each reached 10 or more high-severity violations. A newer facility accumulating 10 or 11 high-severity citations in a single inspection represents a pattern establishing itself early.
Tap42 in Kendall carries identifier SEA2337108, among the highest numbers in this week's data, indicating it is a relatively recent addition to the inspection roll. Its 10 high-severity violations in a single week, including no person in charge and food from unapproved sources, put it among the week's worst performers despite its short history on record.
Rinconcito Latino Mixto, which tied for the most violations this week, carries identifier SEA2319395. Its 12 high-severity citations span management failures, handwashing infrastructure, food sourcing, and shellfish traceability, covering nearly every major category of food safety failure in a single visit.
AC Hotel Miami Midtown, identifier SEA2336474, is a hotel dining operation in one of Miami's most visited corridors. Its 12 high-severity violations, including food not cooked to minimum temperature and food from unapproved sources, appeared in a facility serving a transient customer base that has no ongoing relationship with the establishment and no way to track a subsequent illness back to a meal eaten there.
