TAMPA, FL. State inspectors flagged Temak House Sushi Fusion on West Linebaugh Avenue with eight high-severity violations during the week of May 18, the highest single-facility tally among 15 Tampa restaurants that drew serious citations. The violations included improperly stored toxic chemicals, no shellfish identification records, no consumer advisory for raw foods, and employees who were not reporting illness symptoms.
Temak House had no written employee health policy, no person in charge actively performing duties during the inspection, and inspectors documented improper handwashing technique on top of the chemical storage and shellfish recordkeeping failures. That is eight distinct high-severity findings in a single visit, with no intermediate violations listed separately.
The Top Offenders
New Bamboo Express on Kelly Road was the second-worst performer of the week, with seven high-severity violations. Inspectors found no person in charge on duty, no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate handwashing facilities, improper handwashing technique, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods.
Grand Hacienda on Sheldon Road drew six high-severity violations, including no shellfish identification records, no consumer advisory, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and a management failure with no active person in charge. Inspectors also cited improper sewage or wastewater disposal at the facility, an intermediate violation that carries its own contamination risk.
KPOP Food on East 7th Avenue accumulated six high-severity violations including inadequate shellfish records, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, no consumer advisory, improper handwashing technique, and employees not reporting illness. Inspectors also noted single-use items being improperly reused, a practice designed to introduce cross-contamination through items that were never intended to be washed and recycled.
Namaste Express on Preserve Walk Lane was cited for six high-severity violations, including one that stood out from the rest of the week: food from an unapproved or unknown source. That finding, combined with no consumer advisory, improper handwashing technique, and a failure to properly use time as a public health control, made the Namaste Express inspection one of the more varied violation profiles of the week.
One Family Korean Restaurant on Hillsborough Avenue had six high-severity violations, including food not cooked to the required minimum temperature. Inspectors also cited improper handwashing technique, no person in charge, employees not reporting illness symptoms, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory.
Grillsmith Carrollwood on North Dale Mabry Highway drew six high-severity violations, including two that are less common in this week's data: food not cooked to the required minimum temperature and parasite destruction procedures not followed. Inspectors also documented no shellfish identification records, no consumer advisory, no person in charge, and employees not reporting illness. Improper sewage disposal was cited as an intermediate violation.
2 Alex's on West Waters Avenue was cited for six high-severity violations: no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness, improper handwashing technique, inadequate shellfish records, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory.
Rasoi Indian Cuisine on East 8th Avenue drew six high-severity violations including a finding not seen elsewhere in this week's data: no allergen awareness demonstrated. Inspectors also cited no employee health policy, improper handwashing technique, inadequate shellfish records, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, and no consumer advisory.
Tikka Masalaa on West Hillsborough was flagged for five high-severity violations including food in poor condition, mislabeled, or adulterated, and improperly stored toxic chemicals. Inspectors also noted inadequate cooling equipment as an intermediate violation, a combination that raises compounding risk when food quality is already in question and the equipment meant to hold it safe is failing.
Acropolis Greek Taverna on East 7th Avenue drew five high-severity violations including inadequate handwashing facilities and time as a public health control not properly used. Inspectors cited improper sewage disposal and single-use items being reused as intermediate violations.
El Puerto Restaurant and Grill on East 5th Avenue was cited for five high-severity violations, including no person in charge, inadequate handwashing facilities, no shellfish records, no consumer advisory, and improperly stored toxic chemicals.
Mandy's Restaurant on West Waters Avenue drew two high-severity violations: improperly cleaned food contact surfaces and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled.
Samurai Blue on North Dale Mabry Highway was cited for one high-severity violation, improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, along with an intermediate finding for multi-use utensils not properly cleaned.
Senor Rocoto on Hanley Road drew two high-severity violations: no employee health policy and improper handwashing technique.
What These Violations Mean
The most widespread high-severity finding this week was the absence of a consumer advisory for raw or undercooked foods, cited at eleven of the fifteen facilities. The advisory is not a formality. It is the mechanism by which a customer with a compromised immune system, a pregnant woman, or an elderly diner learns that a dish carries elevated risk. When Temak House Sushi Fusion, Grillsmith Carrollwood, and nine other Tampa restaurants omit that notice, they remove the only information a vulnerable customer has to make an informed choice.
The cluster of illness-reporting failures at Temak House, New Bamboo Express, Grand Hacienda, KPOP Food, One Family Korean, Grillsmith, 2 Alex's, and Rasoi Indian Cuisine is more acutely dangerous than it may appear on paper. Norovirus, the leading cause of foodborne illness in the United States, spreads most efficiently through a food worker who has symptoms but continues to work. Without a written health policy, there is no documented expectation that workers stay home when sick. Without active reporting, there is no mechanism to catch illness before it reaches a plate.
The food from an unapproved source violation at Namaste Express carries a specific risk that is distinct from the others. Food from outside the licensed supply chain bypasses the inspection and traceability systems that exist to catch contamination before it reaches a restaurant. If a customer becomes ill after eating at Namaste Express, investigators have no harvest records, no distributor records, and no path back to the source.
The combination of improperly stored toxic chemicals and inadequate food contact surface sanitation, seen together at Temak House, Mandy's Restaurant, Tikka Masalaa, and El Puerto Restaurant and Grill, represents two separate contamination pathways operating simultaneously. Chemicals stored near food or mislabeled can reach a plate directly. Surfaces that are not properly sanitized transfer bacteria from one food to the next, invisibly, across every item prepared on them.
The Longer Record
The facilities with the deepest inspection histories drew some of the most serious findings this week. Senor Rocoto carries 39 prior inspections on record, as does Tikka Masalaa. At Senor Rocoto, this week's violations, no employee health policy and improper handwashing technique, are foundational failures that any facility with nearly four dozen inspection cycles should have resolved years ago. Tikka Masalaa's record is equally long, and this week inspectors found food in poor condition, improperly stored chemicals, and failing cold-holding equipment.
2 Alex's has 37 prior inspections on record and drew six high-severity violations this week. Rasoi Indian Cuisine has 32 prior inspections and produced six high-severity findings, including the week's only allergen awareness citation. Mandy's Restaurant has 34 prior inspections and was cited for improperly cleaned food contact surfaces and chemical storage failures.
One Family Korean Restaurant has 31 prior inspections and produced six high-severity violations including undercooked food. El Puerto Restaurant and Grill has 31 prior inspections and was cited for no person in charge, inadequate handwashing facilities, and improperly stored toxic chemicals.
At the newer end of the spectrum, KPOP Food has only 9 prior inspections on record and already drew six high-severity violations this week, including single-use items being reused and inadequate shellfish records. It is the facility with the shortest history in this week's data and among the worst performers by violation count, a pattern that inspectors will be watching in the months ahead.