MIAMI, FL. Inspectors cited two South Florida restaurants with 14 high-severity violations each during the week of May 11, 2026, with records showing unapproved food sourcing, no employee illness policies, and handwashing failures stacked at the same addresses in the same seven-day stretch.
Fifteen restaurants across Miami-Dade and Broward counties drew three or more high-severity citations that week. Not a single facility on the list came from Palm Beach County. Thirteen of the fifteen were in Miami-Dade.
The Worst of the Week
Tribute to Tobacco Road by Kush on South Miami Avenue accumulated the most alarming combination of citations. Inspectors found no person in charge performing duties, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, and inadequate handwashing alongside improper technique. That is five separate breakdowns in the chain between a sick worker and a customer's plate.
The same inspection flagged food from an unapproved or unknown source and inadequate shell stock identification records. When shellfish arrives without proper tagging, there is no way to trace an outbreak back to a harvest bed if someone gets sick.
Havana Beach at 740 Ocean Drive matched that 14-violation count with its own cluster of failures. Inspectors cited no person in charge, no employee health policy, inadequate handwashing, and inadequate handwashing facilities, meaning employees who wanted to wash their hands correctly did not have the infrastructure to do so. The inspection also documented food in poor condition and food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized.
Mikes at Venetia on the ninth floor of 555 NE 15th Street drew 11 high-severity citations. The list included unapproved food sourcing, inadequate shell stock records, employees not reporting illness symptoms, and both inadequate handwashing frequency and improper technique.
The Sweetwater address at 11401 NW 12th Street houses three concepts under one license: Factoria de Azucar, Cafe Bombon, and Little Niko Italian and Pizzeria. Inspectors cited 11 high-severity violations there, including food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, parasite destruction procedures not followed, and no handwashing facilities adequate for the volume of food being prepared.
Ocean Drive and Key Biscayne
Three of the week's cited restaurants sit along or near Ocean Drive, one of the most tourist-trafficked corridors in the country.
Garden House Restaurant at 710 Washington Avenue drew 9 high-severity citations, including food not cooked to required minimum temperature, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled. Inspectors also cited time as a public health control not properly used, meaning food was being held in the temperature danger zone without the documentation required to justify that practice.
News Cafe at Oh Mexico Taco Shop, also on Ocean Drive, drew 2 high-severity violations and 3 intermediate ones. The intermediate violations included improper sewage or wastewater disposal.
Key Biscayne produced two of the week's more serious records. Ceviche Bar at 328 Crandon Boulevard drew 10 high-severity violations, among them unapproved food sourcing, inadequate shell stock records, parasite destruction procedures not followed, and time as a public health control not properly used. A ceviche restaurant with no documented parasite destruction protocol and shellfish it cannot trace is a specific combination of risk.
Tutto Pizza and Pasta, in the same building at Suite 111, drew 3 high-severity violations including food from an unapproved source and toxic substances improperly stored or used.
Broward and the Rest of Miami-Dade
Both Broward County entries this week came from Fort Lauderdale. Anthony's Runway 84 on State Road 84 drew 10 high-severity violations, including no person in charge, employees not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate handwashing facilities, improper handwashing technique, food from an unapproved source, inadequate shell stock records, parasite destruction procedures not followed, and food contact surfaces not properly cleaned.
Lester's Diner on SW 24th Street drew 2 high-severity violations: food contact surfaces not properly cleaned and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled.
In Doral, Basilico Ristorante at Doral on NW 41st Street drew 7 high-severity violations. Inspectors flagged food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, parasite destruction procedures not followed, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, and two separate chemical storage violations.
Tacology at 700 South Miami Avenue drew 4 high-severity violations including food not cooked to the required minimum temperature and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. Sumak at 908 71st Street in Miami Beach drew 9 high-severity violations including food not cooked to minimum temperature, inadequate handwashing facilities, and no consumer advisory. MOO! on SW 42nd Street drew 5 high-severity violations, among them no employee health policy, improper handwashing technique, no consumer advisory, and toxic substances improperly stored or used.
What These Violations Mean
The most concentrated pattern this week was the cluster of employee illness and handwashing failures at the same addresses. Tribute to Tobacco Road, Mikes at Venetia, Factoria de Azucar, Ceviche Bar, and Anthony's Runway 84 all drew citations for employees not reporting illness symptoms alongside other handwashing breakdowns. Norovirus, the leading cause of foodborne illness outbreaks in restaurants, spreads almost entirely through this exact pathway: a worker who is sick, does not report it, and handles food without washing properly.
The unapproved food sourcing citations at Tribute to Tobacco Road, Havana Beach, Mikes at Venetia, Ceviche Bar, Tutto Pizza and Pasta, and Anthony's Runway 84 carry a specific traceability problem. When a foodborne illness cluster emerges, investigators trace it to a harvest location, a distributor, or a processing facility. Food that entered a kitchen through an unverified channel cannot be traced. The investigation stops at the back door.
Parasite destruction failures at Tribute to Tobacco Road, Factoria de Azucar, Ceviche Bar, Anthony's Runway 84, and Basilico Ristorante at Doral are particularly relevant in a market where raw fish preparations are common. Anisakis larvae in fish that has not been properly frozen can cause acute abdominal pain, vomiting, and in some cases require surgical removal. The protocol exists precisely because the hazard is invisible.
The chemical storage violations at Garden House, Tacology, Tutto Pizza and Pasta, MOO!, Lester's Diner, and Basilico Ristorante represent a different category of risk, one that does not require bacterial growth or improper cooking. A cleaning chemical stored above or near food, or an unlabeled spray bottle, can contaminate a meal immediately and without warning.
The Longer Record
Anthony's Runway 84 carries the longest inspection history among the Broward facilities in this report. Its 10 high-severity violations this week, including unapproved sourcing and missing shell stock documentation, come at an address that has accumulated a substantial prior inspection record. A facility with that many inspections on file and still drawing double-digit high-severity citations in a single visit presents a different kind of concern than a location in its first year of operation.
Lester's Diner, also in Fort Lauderdale, has a similarly long inspection history. Its 2 high-severity violations this week were comparatively limited, but the toxic chemical storage citation at a diner with that many prior inspections on record is not a first-time oversight.
Several of the Miami-Dade facilities show shorter histories, suggesting newer operations. Ceviche Bar, Tutto Pizza and Pasta, and Tacology all appear to be relatively recent additions to the inspection record. Ceviche Bar's 10 high-severity violations, including unapproved sourcing and parasite destruction failures, are a significant accumulation for a location that has not yet built a long compliance history.
Sumak at 908 71st Street drew 9 high-severity violations this week. The inspection flagged both inadequate handwashing facilities and food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, a combination that indicates food safety gaps at the preparation stage and the cooking stage simultaneously. That restaurant has not yet returned an inspector's call.