TAMPA, FL. Inspectors arrived at Pho Quyen Cuisine on East Fowler Avenue during the week of July 9 and left with nine high-severity violations documented, including food sourced from unapproved or unknown suppliers, inadequate shell stock records, food not cooked to the required minimum temperature, and employees neither trained nor required to report illness symptoms to management.
Urban Cantina on East Madison Street matched that count exactly, also drawing nine high-severity violations. Inspectors cited the downtown restaurant for the same cluster: unapproved food sourcing, inadequate shellfish traceability records, undercooking, no employee health policy, and failure to use time as a public health control correctly.
The Closure
On July 10, inspectors ordered Twins Delicious Seafood and Soul Food at 5102 N 40th Street shut down. The reason was a single, foundational failure: no handwashing sink on the premises. Without one, hand hygiene by any employee in any part of the operation is not possible.
No other details about Twins Delicious Seafood and Soul Food appear in the state records for this reporting period.
What Inspectors Found
Nosh Express on North West Shore Boulevard also accumulated nine high-severity violations. The West Shore location was cited for employees not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate handwashing by food employees, inadequate handwashing facilities, improper handwashing technique, food in poor condition or adulterated, inadequate shellfish records, failure to follow parasite destruction procedures, and improperly cleaned food contact surfaces. That is three separate handwashing violations at a single facility in a single inspection.
3 Coins Diner on North Nebraska Avenue drew seven high-severity violations. Inspectors found no person in charge present or performing duties, employees not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate handwashing facilities, improper handwashing technique, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, improper use of time as a public health control, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. The diner's sole intermediate violation involved toilet facilities described as inadequate or improperly maintained.
China Buffet on East Fowler Avenue collected six high-severity violations, including no person in charge, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. Inspectors also noted inadequate cooling and cold holding equipment as an intermediate violation.
China House on West Hillsborough Avenue drew six high-severity violations as well, including inadequate handwashing facilities, food from unapproved sources, inadequate shellfish records, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and improper use of time as a public health control. Inspectors also cited improper use of wiping cloths and improperly cleaned multi-use utensils.
Dunkin Donuts on West Hillsborough Avenue was cited for five high-severity violations including improper handwashing technique, inadequate shellfish identification records, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, toxic substances improperly stored or used, and no allergen awareness demonstrated. Inspectors also flagged improper sewage or wastewater disposal as an intermediate violation.
Retro House on East Henderson Avenue drew five high-severity violations, including improper handwashing technique, inadequate shellfish records, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, food not cooked to required minimum temperature, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled.
The Courtyard by Marriott Tampa Northwest on Citrus Park Lane received five high-severity violations: no person in charge present, improper handwashing technique, inadequate shellfish records, improper use of time as a public health control, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Mamas Kitchen 3 on North Florida Avenue was cited for four high-severity violations including no employee health policy, improper handwashing technique, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods. Intermediate violations included improper sewage or wastewater disposal and improperly cleaned multi-use utensils.
Boulon Brasserie on Water Street drew four high-severity violations: inadequate shellfish identification records, failure to follow parasite destruction procedures for fish, no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, and no allergen awareness demonstrated. The Water Street restaurant also had intermediate violations for improperly cleaned multi-use utensils and single-use items being reused.
The Hilton Garden Inn Tampa Ybor on East 9th Avenue was cited for improper handwashing technique, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, food not cooked to required minimum temperature, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Steelbach on North Ola Avenue drew four high-severity violations including no employee health policy, improper handwashing technique, improper use of time as a public health control, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Rocco's Tacos and Tequila Bar on North Westshore Boulevard had three high-severity violations: food from an unapproved or unknown source, inadequate shellfish identification records, and food not cooked to the required minimum temperature.
Applebee's Neighborhood Grill and Bar on West Hillsborough Avenue had the lowest count among this week's flagged facilities, with one high-severity violation for improperly cleaned food contact surfaces and one intermediate violation for inadequate ventilation and lighting.
What These Violations Mean
The illness-reporting failures documented this week at Pho Quyen Cuisine, Urban Cantina, Nosh Express, 3 Coins Diner, and China Buffet are among the most directly dangerous violations inspectors can cite. A food worker with Norovirus who handles ready-to-eat food can infect dozens of customers before the first person reports feeling sick. The combination of no employee health policy and no requirement to report symptoms, as found at Pho Quyen Cuisine, Urban Cantina, China Buffet, Mamas Kitchen 3, and Steelbach, means there is no formal mechanism in place to pull an ill employee off the line.
The shellfish traceability violations cited at Pho Quyen Cuisine, Urban Cantina, Nosh Express, China House, Dunkin Donuts, Retro House, the Courtyard by Marriott, Rocco's Tacos, Boulon Brasserie, and the Hilton Garden Inn are a different category of risk. Oysters, clams, and mussels are often eaten raw or barely cooked, and they can harbor Vibrio and norovirus. Without proper shellfish identification tags, investigators cannot trace a sick customer's oysters back to the harvest bed if an outbreak occurs. The tag is the entire traceability chain.
Food from unapproved sources, cited at Pho Quyen Cuisine, Urban Cantina, and China House, means product that bypassed federal and state safety inspections entirely. There is no way to verify where it came from, how it was handled, or whether it was recalled. The same problem applies to the parasite destruction failures at Nosh Express and Boulon Brasserie: fish served raw or lightly cooked must be frozen to specific temperatures for specific durations to kill parasites like Anisakis. Without documentation that the process was followed, there is no way to know whether it was.
The management absence violations at 3 Coins Diner, China Buffet, and the Courtyard by Marriott matter because they cascade. When no trained person in charge is present, the violations that follow are predictable: handwashing lapses, temperature shortcuts, and illness policies that exist only on paper.
The Longer Record
China Buffet on East Fowler Avenue has the longest inspection history of any facility flagged this week, with 55 prior inspections on record. That is more than four years of documented visits, and this week's six high-severity violations, including no person in charge and no employee health policy, represent the kind of foundational failures that should diminish over time with that much regulatory contact.
3 Coins Diner on North Nebraska Avenue carries 46 prior inspections on record. Urban Cantina has 45. Both facilities drew among the highest violation counts this week. Pho Quyen Cuisine has 35 prior inspections and nine high-severity violations, the same count as Urban Cantina.
The newer facilities on this week's list tell a different story. Boulon Brasserie on Water Street has only 13 prior inspections on record and is already drawing four high-severity violations, including failures around shellfish traceability, parasite destruction, allergen awareness, and consumer advisory. Dunkin Donuts on West Hillsborough Avenue also has 13 prior inspections and drew five high-severity violations, including toxic substance handling and allergen awareness failures.
China House on West Hillsborough Avenue has 28 prior inspections and drew six high-severity violations this week, including food from unapproved sources. Rocco's Tacos and Tequila Bar on North Westshore Boulevard has 35 prior inspections and was cited this week for food from an unapproved source and food not cooked to minimum temperature. Whether those sourcing violations reflect the same supplier across multiple inspection cycles is not addressed in the state records for this period.
