Flies landing on pastries in a bakery display case and employees who failed to wash their hands after talking on a cellphone, carrying soiled plates and wiping hands on a dirty cloth were among the violations that forced the state to temporarily close three South Florida restaurants last week.
The Sun Sentinel typically highlights restaurant inspections conducted by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation in Broward and Palm Beach counties. We cull through inspections that happen weekly and spotlight places ordered shut for “high-priority violations,” such as improper food temperatures or dead cockroaches.
Any restaurant that fails a state inspection must stay closed until it passes a follow-up. If you spot a possible violation and wish to file a complaint, contact Florida DBPR. (But please don’t contact us: The Sun Sentinel doesn’t inspect restaurants.)
BROWARD COUNTY
La Caleñita Restaurant & Bakery
1931 Pembroke Road, Hollywood
Ordered shut: Dec. 19
Why: 13 violations (five high-priority), including:
- About 13 live flies “landing on guava pastries, apple turnovers at front counter display case” (stop sale ordered) and “on glass shelves, walls of front counter bakery display case.”
- Stop sale also ordered for “raw tilapia packaged on-site using a reduced oxygen packaging method fully thawed in walk-in cooler.”
- “Raw beef stored above ready-to-eat corn in walk-in cooler.”
- “Bottle of windshield washer fluid stored on prep table with beverages, unwashed produce.”
Status: Reopened the same day after a second visit found four violations (three intermediate and one basic), with a follow-up inspection required.
Fat Freddy’s Sub Shop
221 Prospect Road, Oakland Park
Ordered shut: Dec. 17
Why: Seven violations (four high-priority), including:
- Operator seen “talking on cellphone [then engaging] in food preparation without washing hands.”
- “Entire establishment has no potable water.”
- Inside of “beverage-air, reach-in cooler interior has accumulation of food debris.”
- “Observed raw sausage over rolls not all commercially packaged in Frigidaire reach-in freezer.”
Status: Reopened Dec. 18 after a follow-up visit found one high-priority violation.
PALM BEACH COUNTY
Strathmore Bagels & Deli
4095 State Road 7, Wellington
Ordered shut: Dec. 16
Why: 10 violations (six high-priority), including:
- More than 180 live flies “behind front counter landing on clean plates, packaged bread, cutting boards used to prepare food, display cases,” “in kitchen bagel preparation area on walls by bagel roller and speed racks” and “in kitchen dry storage area outside of walk-in cooler flying around landing on walls and boxes.”
- Three dead roaches “behind front counter on shelves with clean plates over make-top cooler” and “in kitchen inside drawers under flat-top with commercially packaged cheese stored.”
- “Cook wiped hands on visibly soiled wiping cloth after removing from back pocket and then handled ready-to-eat food while putting on plate without washing hands.”
- “Waitress handled soiled plates while removing from table and then handled clean plates of food from serving window to take to customers table without washing hands.”
- Time/temperature issue involved “front-counter turkey.”
Status: Remained closed on Dec. 17 after a next-day inspection found three violations, but it reopened later that day after a third visit found one intermediate violation.