3 restaurants shut down for violations
Rodent droppings on wine bottles, clusters of live roaches in dry storage and live flies in the kitchen temporarily closed three South Florida restaurants that failed state inspections last week.
These unwanted critters briefly shut popular Fort Lauderdale beachfront icon Casablanca Cafe, Lakeside Anchor Inn in Lantana and Ocean One Bar and Grille in Delray Beach. Readers will recall Ocean One’s fly woes last week in this space, although they must have found some swatters because the restaurant has now reopened.
The South Florida Sun Sentinel highlights restaurant inspections in Broward and Palm Beach counties from the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Here’s how it works: We cull through hundreds of restaurant and bar inspections that happen weekly and spotlight places ordered shut for “high-priority violations,” like improper food temperatures or dead cockroaches. On occasion we may highlight the weirder violations we notice, like this pizzeria that put a dead 80-pound iguana in its freezer.
Sun Sentinel readers can browse full Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade county reports on our state inspection map, updated weekly (usually Monday) with fresh data pulled from the Florida DBPR website.
Any restaurant that fails inspections must stay closed until it passes a follow-up state inspection. If you spotted a possible violation and wish to file a complaint, contact Florida DBPR here. (But don’t contact us: The Sun Sentinel doesn’t inspect restaurants.)
Casablanca Cafe
3049 Alhambra St., Fort Lauderdale
Ordered shut: April 21
Why: Inspectors shut down Casablanca April 21 after spotting nine violations, including “six rodent droppings on rack over dishwashing area where soiled dishes are placed to be washed.” Other major issues: “20 rodent droppings on shelves where wine bottles are stored at side bar” and “over 30 rodent droppings in dry
storage where packaged foods are stored.” Casablanca reopened April 22 when a follow-up inspection found zero problems.
Lakeside Anchor Inn
2412 Floral Road, Lantana Ordered shut: April 19 and April 20
Why: Inspectors temporarily shut this waterfront restaurant and oyster bar for the third — and fourth — times within the past 12 months on April 19 and April 20. Inspectors first ordered it shut April 19 for 23 violations such as “6 live roaches on floor under reach-in freezer at cook line,” “1 live roach on the wall next to hand-washing sink in prep area,” “2 live roaches in cardboard boxes” near the kitchen and more than 80 rodent droppings found in dry storage. Inspectors also ordered the restaurant to stop selling cheese-stuffed mushrooms, rice, baked potatoes, lamb chops, onion soup and other items “due to temperature abuse.” Inspectors during an April 20 follow-up visit kept the restaurant shut after discovering seven more violations including “2 flying insects in kitchen,” 16 more live roaches in dry storage, next to the hand sink and beneath prep stations, and “50+ rodent droppings on boxes and equipment” in dry storage. The restaurant was allowed to fully reopen April 21 after inspectors found only basic violations.