WEST PALM BEACH, FL. Inspectors cited Keese's on Clematis Street for five high-severity violations during the week of August 18, including food sourced from unapproved or unknown suppliers and toxic chemicals stored or labeled improperly near food, making it the most cited facility in a week that saw 15 West Palm Beach restaurants rack up high-severity findings.
The Clematis Street bar also drew citations for employees not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate handwashing facilities, and improper handwashing technique. That combination, three separate failures in the handwashing chain plus an unknown food source plus chemical storage problems, placed it in a category of its own for the week.
The Closure and the Violations
On August 19, state inspectors ordered Jerk Island Take Out Rest on West 45th Street shut for roach activity. The closure came alongside a high-severity citation for no employee health policy, meaning the restaurant had no written protocol for keeping sick workers out of the kitchen even before the pest problem surfaced.
Hook Fish and Chicken on North Australian Avenue accumulated four high-severity violations and one intermediate. Inspectors cited the restaurant for no employee health policy, employees not reporting illness symptoms, improper handwashing technique, and inadequate shellfish traceability records. The intermediate violation was for reusing single-use items.
Park West Palm on Georgia Avenue drew four high-severity violations as well. The person in charge was not present or not performing duties, employees were not reporting illness symptoms, handwashing technique was improper, and food contact surfaces were not properly cleaned or sanitized.
Golden City on Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard also collected four high-severity findings: employees not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate handwashing by food employees, improper handwashing technique, and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled.
This Is It Cafe on 24th Street was cited for three high-severity violations. Inspectors found food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, food not cooked to required minimum temperatures, and no consumer advisory posted for raw or undercooked menu items.
Palm Beach Lobsters and Seafood on North Dixie Highway drew three high-severity violations, including no person in charge present or performing duties, improper handwashing technique, and inadequate shellfish identification records. Inspectors also cited improperly cleaned multi-use utensils as an intermediate violation.
Kouun Asian Eatery on Belvedere Road was cited for three high-severity violations: employees not reporting illness symptoms, inadequate handwashing facilities, and improper handwashing technique.
Howley's Restaurant on South Dixie Highway drew two high-severity citations, one for inadequate handwashing by food employees and one for food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized.
Wingstop on North Military Trail was cited for inadequate shellfish traceability records and toxic chemicals improperly stored or labeled, plus an intermediate violation for improperly cleaned multi-use utensils.
China Star II on Northlake Boulevard drew citations for employees not reporting illness symptoms and improper handwashing technique. Inspectors also noted inadequate toilet facilities as an intermediate violation.
Morgan's Country Kitchen on Business Parkway was cited for improper handwashing technique and inadequate shellfish identification records, with a single-use item reuse violation as an intermediate finding.
Paddock Room Rest on North Congress Avenue drew citations for inadequate shellfish traceability records and food contact surfaces not properly cleaned or sanitized, along with improperly cleaned multi-use utensils.
Wendy's on 45th Street was cited for improper handwashing technique and inadequate shellfish identification records, plus improperly cleaned multi-use utensils as an intermediate finding.
Malakor Thai Cafe on 25th Street drew a single high-severity citation for no employee health policy or an inadequate one.
What These Violations Mean
The most pervasive finding this week was improper handwashing, whether inadequate facilities, inadequate technique, or employees simply not washing at all. Inspectors cited this cluster of violations at Keese's, Hook Fish and Chicken, Park West Palm, Golden City, Palm Beach Lobsters and Seafood, Kouun Asian Eatery, Howley's, China Star II, Morgan's Country Kitchen, and Wendy's. Hands carry Norovirus, Salmonella, and E. coli directly from surface to food. Technique matters: a rinse without soap, or a wash under five seconds, leaves pathogens behind at nearly the same rate as no wash at all.
The illness-reporting failures documented at Keese's, Hook Fish and Chicken, Park West Palm, Golden City, Kouun Asian Eatery, China Star II, and Jerk Island are a distinct and serious problem. A sick employee with Norovirus who handles food can infect dozens of customers from a single shift. Without a written health policy, there is no mechanism to send that employee home, and no record that management ever tried.
Food from unapproved sources, cited at Keese's, removes the traceability that makes outbreak investigation possible. If a customer gets sick, state health officials need to trace the food back to a processor or farm. An unknown or unapproved supplier makes that chain impossible to follow.
Inadequate shellfish identification records appeared at Hook Fish and Chicken, Palm Beach Lobsters and Seafood, Wingstop, Morgan's Country Kitchen, Paddock Room Rest, and Wendy's. Shellfish are consumed raw or lightly cooked and carry Vibrio and hepatitis A. Harvest tags on shellfish containers establish exactly where and when the product was pulled from the water. Without those records, a contaminated batch cannot be traced or recalled.
The Longer Record
Howley's Restaurant has the longest inspection history of any facility cited this week, with 41 prior inspections on record. Two high-severity violations in a single visit, including food contact surface sanitation failures, at a location with that many documented visits suggests the problems inspectors found this week are not new to the building.
This Is It Cafe and Hook Fish and Chicken each have 35 prior inspections, and both drew multiple high-severity citations this week. This Is It was cited for undercooking food and unsanitized food contact surfaces. Hook Fish and Chicken drew four high-severity violations across illness reporting, handwashing, and shellfish traceability.
Keese's has 29 prior inspections and led the week with five high-severity violations. The combination of unapproved food sourcing and chemical storage failures alongside three separate handwashing breakdowns, at a location with nearly three dozen inspection cycles behind it, is a notable accumulation.
Park West Palm on Georgia Avenue stands out for a different reason. With only 10 prior inspections on record, it is among the newest locations cited this week, and it already carries four high-severity violations including the absence of a person in charge. Facilities without active managerial oversight during an inspection tend to accumulate more critical violations, and Park West Palm's short history already shows that pattern forming.
Kouun Asian Eatery has just four prior inspections on record. Three high-severity violations this week, including inadequate handwashing facilities and employees not reporting illness, make it the newest location on this list with the most immediate infrastructure problems. Whether those facilities have since been corrected has not been confirmed in the public record.
The Longer Pattern
Shellfish traceability failures at six separate facilities in a single week, ranging from a Wingstop to a seafood specialty restaurant, point to a documentation gap that crosses cuisine type and price point. The records that allow a contaminated oyster or clam harvest to be traced back to its source were missing at each of those locations.
Jerk Island Take Out Rest remains the week's only emergency closure. The roach activity that triggered it was documented on August 19, the second day of the inspection period. Whether a follow-up inspection confirmed the restaurant met standards before reopening is not reflected in the current public record.
