MIAMI, FL. Inspectors cited Havana Beach at 740 Ocean Drive for 14 high-severity violations during the week of May 12, the highest single-facility tally in the tri-county region, with findings that included food from unapproved sources, no employee health policy, inadequate handwashing facilities, and shellfish on hand with no traceability records.
Fifteen restaurants across Miami-Dade and Broward counties drew three or more high-severity violations during the same seven-day stretch. Thirteen of those facilities were in Miami-Dade.
The Violations
Havana Beach, one of the most visible restaurant addresses in South Florida, drew citations for food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, food in poor condition, inadequate shell stock identification, and no person in charge present or performing duties. The inspector also noted that no written employee health policy was on file.
Two facilities in Sweetwater and Miami's upper Brickell area each reached 11 high-severity violations. Factoria de Azucar / Cafe Bombon / Little Niko Italian and Pizzeria at 11401 NW 12th Street was cited for employees not reporting illness symptoms, no person in charge, parasite destruction procedures not followed, and food not cooked to required minimum temperature, in addition to inadequate handwashing facilities and improperly cleaned food contact surfaces.
Mikes at Venetia at 555 NE 15th Street, a ninth-floor restaurant in Miami, drew the same 11-violation count. Inspectors cited food from unapproved sources, shell stock with no identification records, employees not reporting illness symptoms, and both inadequate handwashing by employees and improper technique.
On Collins Avenue, Motek Miami Beach at 2701 Collins Avenue collected 10 high-severity violations. The list included no person in charge, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, food from unapproved sources, shell stock traceability failures, and improperly cleaned food contact surfaces.
Anthony's Runway 84 at 330 State Road 84 in Fort Lauderdale matched that count with 10 high-severity violations of its own. Inspectors found no person in charge, no handwashing facilities, employees not reporting illness, food from unapproved sources, shellfish with no identification records, and parasite destruction procedures not followed.
Snappers Fish and Chicken at 18312 NW 7th Avenue drew 9 high-severity violations, including employees not reporting illness, inadequate handwashing by employees, no handwashing facilities, improper technique, food from unapproved sources, shell stock identification failures, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Ficelle Boulangerie and Patisserie / Le Bistro by Ficelle at 1440 NW North River Drive also reached 9 high-severity violations. Inspectors cited no employee health policy, inadequate handwashing by employees, improper technique, food from unapproved sources, shell stock records missing, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, time as a public health control not properly used, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked items.
Mary's Cuban Cafe at 808 SE 8th Street in Hialeah rounded out the 9-violation tier. Inspectors documented no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness, improper handwashing technique, food in poor condition, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, food not cooked to required minimum temperature, no consumer advisory, and improperly stored or labeled toxic chemicals.
Moo at 12735 SW 42nd Street drew 5 high-severity violations, including no employee health policy, improper handwashing technique, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, and toxic substances improperly identified or stored.
Ceviche Bar at 328 Crandon Boulevard, Suite 120 in Key Biscayne, drew 5 high-severity violations: no person in charge, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, time as a public health control not properly used, and improperly stored or labeled toxic chemicals.
Tutto Pizza and Pasta at 328 Crandon Boulevard, Suite 111, directly sharing the same Key Biscayne address block as Ceviche Bar, was cited for food from unapproved sources, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and toxic substances improperly identified, stored, or used.
News Cafe at Oh Mexico Taco Shop at 804 Ocean Drive drew 2 high-severity violations, including improper handwashing technique and improperly cleaned food contact surfaces.
Lester's Diner at 250 SW 24th Street in Fort Lauderdale was cited for improperly cleaned food contact surfaces and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled.
Coco Beach at 960 Ocean Drive drew one high-severity citation for toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled.
What These Violations Mean
The most widespread high-severity violation this week was improperly cleaned or sanitized food contact surfaces, cited at Havana Beach, Factoria de Azucar, Mikes at Venetia, Motek Miami Beach, Anthony's Runway 84, Snappers Fish and Chicken, Ficelle Boulangerie, Mary's Cuban Cafe, Moo, Tutto Pizza and Pasta, and News Cafe at Oh Mexico Taco Shop. Cutting boards, prep tables, and slicing equipment that are not properly sanitized between uses become direct transfer routes for bacteria including Salmonella and E. coli. The risk is not hypothetical: the surface that touches raw chicken and is not sanitized before it touches ready-to-eat food is a contamination event, not a near-miss.
The cluster of "food from unapproved sources" citations at Havana Beach, Mikes at Venetia, Motek Miami Beach, Anthony's Runway 84, Snappers Fish and Chicken, Ficelle Boulangerie, and Tutto Pizza and Pasta carries a specific consequence: if a customer becomes ill, there is no supply chain to trace. Food from approved sources comes with documentation that links a product to a specific lot, farm, or processor. Without that chain, investigators have no starting point.
Several of the same facilities, including Havana Beach, Mikes at Venetia, Motek Miami Beach, Anthony's Runway 84, Snappers Fish and Chicken, and Ficelle Boulangerie, were also cited for inadequate shell stock identification records. Shellfish are among the highest-risk foods served in Florida because they are often consumed raw or minimally cooked and can carry Vibrio and hepatitis A. Shell stock tags are the only mechanism that allows a public health response when a cluster of illnesses is traced to a single harvest area.
No employee health policy and employees not reporting illness symptoms appeared together at Factoria de Azucar, Mikes at Venetia, Motek Miami Beach, Anthony's Runway 84, Snappers Fish and Chicken, Mary's Cuban Cafe, and Ceviche Bar. A written health policy is the mechanism by which a sick employee knows they are required to tell a manager before handling food. Without it, a worker with Norovirus or Salmonella has no formal instruction to stay off the line.
The Longer Record
Anthony's Runway 84 on State Road 84 in Fort Lauderdale is not a new operation. It is one of the two Broward County facilities on this week's list, and its 10 high-severity violations, including parasite destruction failures and food from unapproved sources, come at a location with an established inspection history. A facility that has been inspected repeatedly and still presents with no person in charge and no handwashing infrastructure in a single visit is not a facility encountering these standards for the first time.
Lester's Diner in Fort Lauderdale, the other Broward location cited this week, drew only 2 high-severity violations and no intermediate violations. That is the lightest citation profile among the 15 facilities on this list, though improperly stored toxic chemicals near food remain a direct risk regardless of the total count.
Among the Miami-Dade facilities, Havana Beach and the two Ocean Drive neighbors, News Cafe at Oh Mexico Taco Shop and Coco Beach, sit on one of the most heavily trafficked tourist corridors in Florida. High foot traffic does not create inspection risk on its own, but it does mean the pool of people exposed to any given condition is substantially larger than at a neighborhood location.
Ceviche Bar and Tutto Pizza and Pasta share the same Crandon Boulevard address block in Key Biscayne. Both drew high-severity violations this week, including citations for toxic chemical storage at both locations. Two facilities in the same building flagged for chemical handling on the same inspection cycle is a detail the record does not explain.
Mary's Cuban Cafe in Hialeah was the only facility this week cited for food not cooked to required minimum temperature alongside food in poor condition. Those two violations together, at a facility where no employee health policy was also on file, represent the combination inspectors most associate with outbreak conditions.