Palm Bay Asian restaurant pulls most violations in Brevard this week

Staff reports
·7 min read

You can use the database to search by county or by restaurant name.

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 Brevard County restaurant inspections site.

Here's the breakdown for recent health inspections in Brevard County, Florida, for the week of April 8-14, 2024. 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 Brevard County restaurant inspection site.

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

These restaurants met all standards during their April 8-14 inspections and no violations were found.

Note: The ** indicates restaurants that failed an inspection and aced a follow-up inspection in the same week

Which Brevard County restaurants had high priority violations?

Hong Kong Restaurant Of Palm Bay Inc.

5270 Babcock St. N.E. Suite 35, Palm Bay

Routine Inspection on April 9

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

20 total violations, with eight high-priority violations

  • High Priority - Raw eggs and chicken stored over cooked noodles and ready to eat pork

  • High Priority - Cook failed to wash hands before putting on gloves to cook ribs in the wok **Warning**

  • High Priority - Employee began working with food, handling clean equipment or utensils, or touching unwrapped single-service items without first washing hands: cashier handled customer payments/ cellphone and proceeded to prepare food in fryer and box to go items. **Warning**

  • High Priority - Nonfood-grade bags used in direct contact with meats **Repeat Violation**

  • High Priority - Operating with an expired Division of Hotels and Restaurants license. **Corrected On-Site**

  • High Priority - Raw animal food stored over or with ready-to-eat food in a freezer - not all products commercially packaged. Raw chicken over ready to eat in the freezer **Repeat Violation**

  • High Priority - Raw animal foods not properly separated from each other in holding unit based upon minimum required cooking temperature. Raw chicken over cooked pork in the walk-in cooler **Repeat Violation**

  • High Priority - Single-use gloves not changed as needed after changing tasks or when damaged or soiled. **Warning**

Joy Luck Restaurant

125 E. Merritt Island Causeway No. 117, Merritt Island

Routine Inspection on April 12

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

Seven total violations, with one high-priority violation

  • High Priority - Operating with an expired Division of Hotels and Restaurants license. 4-1-24

Kay's Real Pit Bar-Bq

1552 W. King St., Cocoa

Complaint Inspection on April 8

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

15 total violations, with five 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. Dish Washing Machine chlorine sanitizer at 0 ppm, ran multiple times due to no prime switch on unit, **Warning**

  • 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. Observed wait staff employee take ladle from storage and not pick up at handle but at food ladle area with non washed hands, item placed in dish pit and re-educated employee **Warning**

  • High Priority - Time/temperature control for safety food cold held at greater than 41 degrees Fahrenheit. The intent for these items where to go to oven to be reheated, where observed holding at ambient air from approx 10: 30 a.m. ; baked beans (67F); pulled pork cooked previous day (66F); frozen corn on cob, hot water added (97F); smoked cooked pork pieces held at ambient air on table from 10am (71F) cooked on site eye round beef (110F) holding on speed rack. Multiple items, beans, corn and pulled pork were staged to go into the oven to reheat but holding at ambient air. Pan of meat scraps placed in walk-in cooler to rapid chill. Recheck temp after 30 mins 43°cold holding. **Warning**

  • High Priority - Time/temperature control for safety food controlled by time and required to be marked with the use by time is not marked and the required time of disposal cannot be determined. See stop sale. Observed whole raw shell eggs that are under time plan being placed back into reach-in cooler unit and not discarded as required; see stop sale.

  • High Priority - Time/temperature control for safety food held using time as a public health control not discarded at the end of the 4-hour/6-hour period. See stop sale. Observed grill cook placed whole raw shell eggs back into reach-in cooler after end of breakfast service; see stop sale. **Warning**

Le French

1924 State Road A1A, Satellite Beach

Routine Inspection on April 12

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

Four total violations, with one high-priority violation

  • High Priority - Dishmachine not sanitizing properly. Discontinue use of dishmachine for sanitizing and set up manual sanitization until dishmachine is repaired and sanitizing properly. Tested machine 0 ppm, tried priming, chemical not pulling through line. Operator will call for service. **Warning**

Lena's Cafe

3101 N. State Road A1A, Melbourne

Routine Inspection on April 11

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

Nine total violations, with one high-priority violation

  • High Priority - Raw animal foods not properly separated from each other in holding unit based upon minimum required cooking temperature. Raw chicken over raw fish in 2-door reach-in cooler. **Corrected On-Site**

Marker 99

4263 N. Harbor City Blvd., Melbourne

Complaint Inspection on April 8

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

Five total violations, with two high-priority violations

  • High Priority - - From initial inspection : High Priority - Employee touching ready-to-eat food with their bare hands - food was not being heated as a sole ingredient to 145 degrees F or immediately added to other ingredients to be cooked/heated to the minimum required temperature to allow bare hand contact. Establishment has no approved Alternative Operating Procedure. Bartender cutting lemons that will go into beverages without wearing gloves. **Warning** - From follow-up inspection 2024-04-08: **Time Extended**

  • High Priority - - From initial inspection : High Priority - Server handled soiled dishes or utensils and then picked up plated food, served food, or prepared a beverage without washing hands. **Warning** - From follow-up inspection 2024-04-08: **Time Extended**

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 Florida Today: Brevard County restaurant inspections for April 8 to 14