MELBOURNE, FL. When state inspectors walked into TJF 234 LLC, the Tijuana Flats franchise at 10 E New Haven Ave, on May 20, 2026, they found food that had not been cooked to the required minimum temperature, toxic chemicals stored or labeled improperly near food areas, and no person in charge present or performing duties. They documented eight high-severity violations and four intermediate ones. Then they left the restaurant open.

What Inspectors Found

1HIGHFood not cooked to required minimum temperatureHigh severity
2HIGHToxic chemicals improperly stored or labeledHigh severity
3HIGHEmployee not reporting symptoms of illnessHigh severity
4HIGHPerson in charge not present or performing dutiesHigh severity
5HIGHFood contact surfaces not properly cleaned/sanitizedHigh severity
6HIGHFood in poor condition, mislabeled, or adulteratedHigh severity
7HIGHNo consumer advisory for raw/undercooked foodsHigh severity
8HIGHInadequate shell stock identification/recordsHigh severity
9INTERMEDIATEMulti-use utensils not properly cleanedIntermediate
10INTERMEDIATEImproper sanitizing solution or proceduresIntermediate
11INTERMEDIATEInadequate cooling/cold holding equipmentIntermediate
12INTERMEDIATESingle-use items improperly reusedIntermediate

The undercooking violation is the most direct food safety threat in the May 20 record. Salmonella in poultry survives below 165 degrees Fahrenheit, and a restaurant that serves food before it reaches required temperatures is serving food that can still carry live pathogens to a customer's plate.

Alongside that, inspectors cited improperly stored or labeled toxic chemicals. Chemicals stored near food preparation areas create a contamination risk that is immediate and difficult to detect, since chemical contamination does not change the taste or appearance of food before it causes harm.

The absence of a person in charge performing supervisory duties was also flagged as high-severity. That violation matters because managerial oversight is the mechanism by which other violations get caught and corrected before food reaches customers. When no one is actively in charge, other problems compound.

Employees were also cited for not reporting symptoms of illness, a high-severity violation that state records flag as a primary driver of multi-victim outbreaks. Food workers who continue working while symptomatic are the most direct human transmission route for norovirus and similar pathogens.

The remaining high-severity violations included food in poor condition or mislabeled, food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, no consumer advisory posted for raw or undercooked menu items, and inadequate shell stock identification records. The four intermediate violations covered multi-use utensils not properly cleaned, improper sanitizing concentration or procedures, inadequate cooling and cold holding equipment, and single-use items being reused.

What These Violations Mean

The undercooking violation and the lack of a consumer advisory are directly connected. State code requires restaurants to post a consumer advisory when they serve any food that may be raw or undercooked, specifically so that customers who are pregnant, elderly, immunocompromised, or otherwise at elevated risk can make an informed choice. Without that advisory at the Melbourne location, those customers had no notice.

The shell stock identification failure is a separate traceability problem. Shellfish such as oysters and clams are high-risk foods consumed raw or lightly cooked, and the tagging and record-keeping system exists so that if a customer becomes ill, the specific harvest lot can be traced and pulled from distribution. Without those records, an outbreak investigation loses its most critical tool.

The combination of improperly cleaned food contact surfaces, multi-use utensils with inadequate cleaning, and wrong sanitizer concentration creates a layered contamination environment. Each of those violations on its own is a known bacterial transfer pathway. Together, they mean that surfaces and tools used across multiple food items were not reliably decontaminated between uses.

Inadequate cooling equipment is a temperature failure that does not require any single act of negligence. If the equipment cannot hold required temperatures, food enters the bacterial growth range regardless of what staff do correctly. That violation, paired with the undercooking citation, means food safety risk existed on both ends of the temperature spectrum during this inspection.

The Longer Record

TJF 234 LLC, Melbourne: Inspection History

2026-05-208 high, 4 intermediate violations. Restaurant remained open.
2026-04-223 high, 1 intermediate violations.
2025-12-195 high, 1 intermediate violations.
2025-07-095 high, 3 intermediate violations.
2025-01-306 high, 0 intermediate violations.
2024-09-033 high, 1 intermediate violations.
2024-03-214 high, 1 intermediate violations.
2023-10-096 high, 1 intermediate violations.

The May 20 inspection was not an anomaly. State records show 30 inspections on file for this location, with 207 total violations documented across that history. The facility has never been emergency-closed.

Every one of the eight most recent inspections on record included high-severity violations. The counts were 3, 5, 5, 6, 3, 4, 6, and 1 high-severity violations in the eight inspections leading up to May 20. The May 20 tally of eight high-severity violations is the highest single-inspection count in that recent run.

The pattern in the prior record shows no inspection period in which high-severity violations disappeared. The location was cited for six high-severity violations in October 2023 and again for six in January 2025, with similar counts in between. The May 2026 inspection did not represent a new direction. It represented a new peak in a consistent record.

The restaurant has accumulated 207 violations across 30 inspections and has never been closed. After the May 20 inspection, it remained open.