BOCA RATON, FL — State inspectors temporarily closed four Palm Beach and Broward food service operations last week, all of them over pest activity, according to Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation records.
One of them was in Boca Raton.
Pests drove nearly the entire week statewide. Of the 29 emergency closures Florida inspectors ordered between July 20 and July 24, 24 cited rodents, roaches, flies or some combination of the three. The rest involved a sewage backup, missing dishwashing facilities, no restrooms, and one unlicensed operation.
Emergency Closures: Palm Beach & Broward
An emergency closure is not a disciplinary penalty. It is a temporary step inspectors use when they find conditions they consider an elevated risk to the public or to employees, and the business stays closed until those conditions are corrected.
Sushi Yan, at 1929 N. Federal Highway in Boca Raton, was ordered closed on the afternoon of July 21 after inspectors reported rodent and fly activity. The routine inspection that triggered the closure documented 10 high-priority, four intermediate and five basic violations, state records show. A follow-up visit the next day found the restaurant had not yet complied, with three high-priority and three intermediate violations still logged. Records show inspectors returned on July 23, documented no violations, and cleared the restaurant to reopen at 9:28 a.m.
Raja, at 12794 Forest Hill Blvd. in Wellington, was closed on July 21 after inspectors reported rodent, roach and fly activity — the only closure in the state that week citing all three. The inspection recorded five high-priority, two intermediate and two basic violations. Records show a callback visit the following morning still found problems, but a second visit that same day documented none, and the restaurant was cleared to reopen at 10:25 a.m. on July 22.
Craft Ft Lauderdale, at 551 N. Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale, was closed on July 21 over fly activity. The restaurant had already been inspected the day before, when inspectors documented three high-priority, three intermediate and three basic violations and recommended an administrative complaint. The July 21 visit that led to the closure logged two high-priority, five intermediate and six basic violations. Records show it was cleared to reopen at 9:48 a.m. on July 22.
Palomino Gardens Retirement LLC, a licensed food service operation at 9885 Palomino Drive in Lake Worth, was closed on the morning of July 21 after inspectors reported fly activity during a complaint inspection that documented three high-priority and three intermediate violations. Records list a reopening time of 1:28 p.m. on July 22, though inspection records for that same day show a callback visit that found one high-priority and one intermediate violation remaining, with a time extension granted.
Other Florida Emergency Closures
Elsewhere in Florida, inspectors ordered 25 additional emergency closures during the same period. Those included a Denny's in St. Petersburg closed over roach and rodent activity, a Twin Peaks in Jacksonville closed over rodent and fly activity, a Subway in Miami closed after a sewage backup, and The Boathouse in Naples closed over rodent activity.
Inspections This Week: High-Priority Violations
Beyond the closures, state records show inspectors completed 546 food service inspections across Palm Beach and Broward counties during the same reporting cycle, covering 484 separate establishments. More than half — 311 — documented at least one high-priority violation.
The single highest count in the two counties came from Boca Raton. At Flakowitz, 1999 N. Federal Highway, inspectors documented 15 high-priority, one intermediate and five basic violations during a July 21 routine inspection and recommended an administrative complaint, according to state inspection data. A callback the next day still recorded four high-priority violations, and inspectors again recommended an administrative complaint. State records also show Flakowitz resolved an earlier case in June, paying a $360 fine.
Boca Raton accounted for several of the week's higher counts. Kixi Cafe at 171 SE Mizner Blvd. was documented with 10 high-priority, five intermediate and three basic violations on July 22, with two high-priority violations still recorded at a callback the following day. Moe's Southwest Grill #41 at 2200 W. Glades Road was documented with nine high-priority violations on July 24; a callback the next day found none. H&H Bagels, also on Glades Road, was documented with eight high-priority violations on July 24 and likewise cleared its callback with no violations recorded. Hannah's Kitchen at 4822 NW Second Ave. was documented with seven high-priority, three intermediate and four basic violations on July 23.
In Wellington, TooJay's Deli was documented with 10 high-priority and three intermediate violations on July 21, and records show a callback the next day found none. Lemongrass Asian Bistro was documented with eight high-priority violations on July 22 and also cleared its callback.
Broward's highest counts came from La Perla Seafood Bar & Grill in Sunrise, with nine high-priority, two intermediate and 10 basic violations on July 20, and Tiki Beach Cafe in Fort Lauderdale, with eight high-priority and four intermediate violations during a July 22 complaint inspection. Both cleared their callbacks with no violations recorded.
Closer to home, The Bridges Cafe in Delray Beach was documented with six high-priority violations on July 22, and Playa Bowls in Boynton Beach with six on July 24. Deerfield Beach was quiet — none of its 10 inspections that week exceeded a single high-priority violation. Coconut Creek's nine inspections topped out at two.
Disciplinary Orders: Palm Beach & Broward
Disciplinary orders often arrive weeks or months after the inspection that prompted them, so the latest report is a look backward. The most recent Restaurant Disciplinary Activity Report shows 208 resolved cases in Palm Beach and Broward, carrying roughly $97,760 in total fines. The median fine was $400.
The largest local fines went to Sushi Yami in Lake Worth, at $2,600 for five violations on a case signed June 10 stemming from a March 17 inspection; China City in West Palm Beach, at $1,920; and Blue Moon Diner in Palm Beach Gardens and La Granja Restaurant in West Palm Beach, at $1,800 each. Sole Mio Kitchen & Bar in Boynton Beach was fined $1,750 on a case dating back to a December inspection.
Boca Raton had 20 resolved cases, led by Narbona at Boca Raton at $880. Delray Beach had eight, led by Prime 7 at $800.
A dozen businesses appear in both the June disciplinary report and last week's inspection data. Among them: Sushi Yan, which paid a $200 fine on a case signed June 11 before last week's closure, and China Hut in Boynton Beach, which paid $400 in early June and was issued a warning after a July 20 inspection documented four high-priority violations.
Best Inspection In Boca Raton This Week
Based on state inspection records for the current reporting cycle, the strongest first-visit routine inspection documented in Boca Raton was:
Domino's Pizza (Boca Raton) 21073 Powerline Road Inspection Date: July 20, 2026 Violations: 0 High Priority, 0 Intermediate, 3 Basic
According to Florida DBPR inspection data, inspectors did not document any high-priority or intermediate violations during this visit, and the inspection was completed with no further action.
Inspection reports are a snapshot of conditions observed at the time of inspection. On another day, an establishment may have fewer or more violations than noted in the report, and conditions can change.
See Boca Post's ongoing restaurant inspection coverage.
