50 live roaches in one kitchen, flies landing on raw chicken, cutting boards: 4 South Florida restaurants shut

Four South Florida restaurants closed last week after state inspections found issues including “wild big birds” feeding from a trash can, flies landing on raw chicken and 50-plus cockroaches.

The South Florida 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.

Sun Sentinel readers may browse full Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade county reports through our state inspection map, updated weekly (usually Mondays) with fresh data pulled from the Florida DBPR website, myfloridalicense.com/DBPR.

Any restaurant that fails a state inspection must stay closed until it passes a follow-up. If you spotted a possible violation and wish to file a complaint, contact Florida DBPR here. (But please don’t contact us: The Sun Sentinel doesn’t inspect restaurants.

Cracker Barrel, Deerfield Beach

1250 SW 11th Way

Ordered shut: June 13; reopened same day

Why: Two violations (one high-priority), including 10 cockroaches crawling “inside of not-in-use, six-door, reach-in (cooler) under flattop (grill) on right side of cook line.”

The state also discovered “one dead roach on ground next to handwashing sink in prep area.” Both areas were sanitized.

During a same-day reinspection, the state discovered zero new issues and cleared the restaurant to reopen.

King Super Buffet, West Palm Beach

4270 Okeechobee Blvd.

Ordered shut: June 13; reopened June 14

Why: 21 violations (10 high-priority), including at least 43 flies spotted swarming and landing “on raw chicken in reach-in cooler,” at cook line and dishwasher area, “on clean and dirty dishes,” and “in the dining room by main cold and hot buffet,” to name a few spots.

The state also found one live cockroach “in the kitchen by glass sliding door cooler across from three-compartment sink.” They also saw four dead roaches “in the kitchen at cook line by smoker” and “in the dry storage room attached to one of the main dining areas.” The operator cleaned and sanitized the areas.

Also noted in the report: “carpet in dining rooms are heavily soiled with food debris and stains,” “floors in the kitchen (are) soiled with grease and food debris,” “dumpster overflowing garbage at the back” with “wild big birds and flies feeding from the garbage can,” a “buildup of food debris/soil residue on (cooler) door handles and glass in the kitchen and cook line.”

Finally, the restaurant was ordered to stop selling and trash its yellow fried rice, chicken, shrimp, beef, crawfish, clams, sliced pork, lo mein noodles, corn, shelled eggs and boiled eggs “due to temperature abuse.” The restaurant reopened the next day after inspectors found one intermediate and two basic violations.

Bowlero Jupiter Lanes, Jupiter

350 Maplewood Drive

Ordered shut: June 15; reopened June 16

Why: 11 violations (two high-priority), including “50 live roaches under racks stored on floor under three-bay sink in kitchen.”

The report also found a “ceiling tile missing over three-bay sink in kitchen,” “tongs hanging from oven handles,” and “dust on ceiling tiles over prep sink.”

The restaurant was ordered to stop selling and toss one “dented can of mushrooms” and one “dented can of tomatoes.”

A single basic violation was found during a next-day inspection, so the bowling alley restaurant was allowed to reopen.

Acquolina, Weston

2320 Weston Road

Ordered shut: June 15; reopened June 16

Why: Eight violations (six high-priority), including at least 30 flies swarming around “back-room prep area, landing on cutting boards,” as well as at “can storage/pizza area.” (The areas were sanitized during the inspection.)

The restaurant was ordered to stop selling and trash its marsala sauce, tomato sauce, chicken stock and butter “due to temperature abuse,” and to “properly separate” its raw chicken and raw beef from each other as well as raw beef over “ready-to-eat” eggplant.

Despite finding another high-priority issue during the second inspection, the restaurant was cleared to reopen the next day.