22 Okaloosa County restaurants get perfect inspection scores on first try

Staff reports
·7 min read

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Florida's restaurant owners are not required to post restaurant inspection results where guests can see them. So every week, we provide that information for you.

For a complete list of local restaurant inspections, including violations not requiring warnings or administrative action, visit our Okaloosa County restaurant inspections site.

Here's the breakdown for recent health inspections in Okaloosa County for the week of Oct. 23-29, 2023. Please note that some more recent, follow-up inspections may not be included here.

Disclaimer: The Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation describes an inspection report as a 'snapshot' of conditions present at the time of the inspection. On any given day, an establishment may have fewer or more violations than noted in their most recent inspection. An inspection conducted on any given day may not be representative of the overall, long-term conditions at the establishment.

For full restaurant inspection details, visit our Okaloosa County restaurant inspection site.

Which Okaloosa County restaurants got perfect scores on their health inspections?

These restaurants met all standards during their Oct. 23-29 inspections and no violations were found.

** Restaurants that failed an inspection and aced a follow-up inspection in the same week

Which Okaloosa County restaurants had high priority violations?

Fish On

791 Harbor Blvd., Destin

Routine Inspection on Oct. 27

Follow-Up Inspection Required: Violations require further review, but are not an immediate threat to the public.

6 total violations, with 2 high-priority violations

  • High Priority - Dishmachine chlorine sanitizer not at proper minimum strength. Discontinue use of dishmachine for sanitizing and set up manual sanitization until dishmachine is repaired and sanitizing properly. 0 ppm chlorine Corrected during the inspection 100 ppm chlorine **Corrected On-Site**

  • High Priority - Time/temperature control for safety food cold held at greater than 41 degrees Fahrenheit. Saute station make bar- fish 55/53/51/59F , crab cakes 59, Beef patties59F - per operator less than 4 hrs. Items iced and moved into walk in cooler during the inspection to facilitate rapid cooling. **Corrected On-Site** **Repeat Violation** **Warning**

Jester Mardi Gras Daiquiris

32 Harbor Blvd., Destin

Routine Inspection on Oct. 26

Follow-Up Inspection Required: Violations require further review, but are not an immediate threat to the public.

7 total violations, with 1 high-priority violation

  • High Priority - Operating with an expired Division of Hotels and Restaurants license. 6/1/23 Renewed during the inspection. Verified by D6 Office Conf # 236035413 **Corrected On-Site** **Admin Complaint**

Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville

76 Harbor Blvd., Destin

Routine Inspection on Oct. 24

Follow-Up Inspection Required: Violations require further review, but are not an immediate threat to the public.

5 total violations, with 3 high-priority violations

  • High Priority - Cooked/heated time/temperature control for safety food not cooled from 135 degrees Fahrenheit to 41 degrees Fahrenheit within 6 hours. Walk in cooler Egg roll mix cooling over night 45/46/46F Prob Thermometer calibrated with operator Confirmation with Manager Discussion conducted with preparation cook to determine process

  • High Priority - Live, small flying insects in bar area. Approximately 3-4 small flying insects observed at bar in proximity of floor drain. Bar opened during the inspection and area cleaned. Upon re-inspection 2 small flying insects observed in same area. D6DM notified **Warning**

  • High Priority - Stop Sale issued on time/temperature control for safety food due to temperature abuse. Walk in cooler Egg roll mix cooling over night 45/46/46F Prob Thermometer calibrated with operator Confirmation with Manager Confirmed process with preparation cook

Peppers Mexican Grill and Cantina

510 John Sims Pkwy W. Unit D, Niceville

Routine Inspection on Oct. 23

Follow-Up Inspection Required: Violations require further review, but are not an immediate threat to the public.

6 total violations, with 4 high-priority violations

  • High Priority - Cooked/heated time/temperature control for safety food not cooled from 135 degrees Fahrenheit to 41 degrees Fahrenheit within 6 hours. Stop Sale issued on time/temperature control for safety food due to temperature abuse. Walk in cooler Queso cheese dip cooling overnight 45F. Prob Thermometer calibrated with operator **Warning**

  • High Priority - Nonexempt fish offered raw or undercooked has not undergone proper parasite destruction. Fish must be fully cooked or discarded. Raw fish used for Ceviche **Warning**

  • High Priority - Stop Sale issued on time/temperature control for safety food due to temperature abuse. Walk in cooler Queso cheese dip cooling overnight 45F. Prob Thermometer calibrated with operator **Warning**

  • High Priority - Time/temperature control for safety food cold held at greater than 41 degrees Fahrenheit. Fajitas make bar - top - steak 52, chicken 53, bottom drawers - beef 68/70, shredded cheese 61F ( per operator less than 4 hrs. Items iced for rapid cooling during the inspection) Make line low boy drawers under Grill top - sausage 57, steak 44/45, beef 44/45F ( per operator less than 4 hrs. Items also iced to facilitate cooling ) **Repeat Violation** **Warning**

Wendy's Old Fashioned Hamburgers

34717 Emerald Coast Pkwy, Destin

Routine Inspection on Oct. 25

Follow-Up Inspection Required: Violations require further review, but are not an immediate threat to the public.

9 total violations, with 3 high-priority violations

  • High Priority - Employee touched soiled surface and then engaged in food preparation, handled clean equipment or utensils, or touched unwrapped single-service items without washing hands. Employee at make table wearing gloves pulled his pants up and began engaging in food preparation. Employee at fry station wearing gloves looking at her cell phone then placed cell phone in back pocket then began engaging in food preparation at fry station. Neither employee washed hands nor changed gloves prior to inspector asking manager to address situation. **Corrective Action Taken**

  • High Priority - Time/temperature control for safety food cold held at greater than 41 degrees Fahrenheit. Ground beef 41F, sliced tomato 48F, lettuce 39F, shredded cheese 43F, raw bacon 69F ( 10:10-10:30 ). Bacon was placed in walk in cooler to reduce temperature. **Corrective Action Taken** **Repeat Violation**

  • High Priority - Time/temperature control for safety food, other than whole meat roast, hot held at less than 135 degrees Fahrenheit. Eggs 125F (10:10-10:30), chili 136F (10:00-11:00). Eggs discarded by employee, chili reheated to 167F. **Corrected On-Site** **Repeat Violation**

What agency inspects restaurants in Florida?

Routine regulation and inspection of restaurants is conducted by the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. The Department of Health is responsible for investigation and control of food-borne illness outbreaks associated with all food establishments.

How do I report a dirty restaurant in Florida?

If you see abuses of state standards, report them and the Department of Business and Professional Regulation will send inspectors. Call the Florida DBPR at 850-487-1395 or report a restaurant for health violations online.

Get the whole story at our restaurant inspection database.

What does all that terminology in Florida restaurant inspections mean?

Basic violations are those considered against best practices.

A warning is issued after an inspector documents violations that must be corrected by a certain date or within a specified number of days from receipt of the inspection report.

An administrative complaint is a form of legal action taken by the division. Insufficient compliance after a warning, a pattern of repeat violations or existence of serious conditions that warrant immediate action may result in the division initiating an administrative complaint against the establishment. Says the division website: "Correcting the violations is important, but penalties may still result from violations corrected after the warning time was over."

An emergency order — when a restaurant is closed by the inspector — is based on an immediate threat to the public. Here, the Division of Hotels and Restaurants director has determined that the establishment must stop doing business and any division license is suspended to protect health, safety or welfare of the public.

A 24-hour call-back inspection will be performed after an emergency closure or suspension of license.

This article originally appeared on Northwest Florida Daily News: Fort Walton Beach/Destin area restaurant/food truck inspections: Oct. 23-29, 2023