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RiskyEats

Florida restaurant inspection journalism — from public DBPR records.

Atmospheric scene for Jacksonville
Portrait of Sra. Ruth, RiskyEats correspondent

BY SRA. RUTH — METRO BRIEFING

Jacksonville — Restaurant Inspection Briefing

Hijita, te lo digo — Statewide read: the Jacksonville area's chronic density is 18% above the Florida average. the Jacksonville area posts 57 recent high-priority hits. Mix: 1 Brunch, 1 Burritos, 1 Chicken, and 1 Hotel. Mija, in plain English: a 90-day window means the recent inspection stretch, not a verdict on every kitchen in the county. Coño ya, bastante.

🔥 Alerts

Emergency Orders

60 records this window

Restaurants closed by DBPR emergency order in the last 90 days.

Tateleh, no me hagas reír — Yamato Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar in St. Augustine, Top China in Jacksonville and Tunis Wing & Seafood in Jacksonville owned the top of the the Jacksonville area board. 60 emergency-order shutdowns in the 90-day window — DBPR ordered the kitchen closed on the spot. These are the most actionable signals: faster than admin actions, faster than license cancellation, faster than corporate dissolution. Across the Red Alert cohort: 1 Chinese, 1 Restaurant, 1 Seafood, and 1 Sushi. Trend line: emergency-order volume is steady against the last public cut. Mija, in plain English: an emergency order means DBPR ordered service stopped until a callback inspection clears it. Que Dios los ayude.

  • Yamato Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi BarSt. Augustine6 HP3 INT6 BASPestScore 686last visit 2026-06-25
  • Top ChinaJacksonville5 HP4 INT11 BASPestScore 601last visit 2026-06-24
  • Tunis Wing & SeafoodJacksonville7 HP4 INT19 BASPestScore 809last visit 2026-06-19
  • Funky PelicanFlagler Beach3 HP5 INT10 BASPestScore 410last visit 2026-06-18
  • Food DoctorJacksonville6 HP5 INT5 BASPestScore 705last visit 2026-06-17

+55 more in this section on the live site.

Near Miss

57 records this window

Inspections in the last 30 days that posted high-priority violations but were not shut down.

Bendito sea Dios — CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL #2644 in Jacksonville, ANTOJITOS MEXICANOS INDIA BONITA in Jacksonville and HOLIDAY INN EXPRESS in Jacksonville led the board in the Jacksonville area. 57 high-priority citations posted in the 30-day window — none of these resulted in an emergency-order closure (those are in Red Alert). They are the near-miss watch list: restaurants that drew inspector attention but stayed open. Any of them could receive a follow-up inspection. The recurring violation labels were HP and BAS. Mija, in plain English: a high-priority violation is the state saying the risk can touch food safety right now. I tell you, mija — feh.

  • CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL #2644Jacksonville4 HP2 BASScore 402last visit 2025-11-12
  • ANTOJITOS MEXICANOS INDIA BONITAJacksonville4 HP2 INT9 BASPestScore 479last visit 2026-03-18
  • HOLIDAY INN EXPRESSJacksonville3 HP3 INT1 BASScore 331last visit 2025-09-22
  • GOGI KOREAN BBQJacksonville3 HP2 INT8 BASPestScore 378last visit 2026-01-13
  • SURFCASTER RESTAURANTAmelia Island5 HP1 INT4 BASPestScore 564last visit 2026-06-15

+52 more in this section on the live site.

Closed/Delinquent

228 records this window

Two tiers: confirmed closures (owner-validated posts, news, and external places data that say service has stopped) and DBPR delinquent/inactive licenses (Primary Status Code 45/46) — a regulatory state, not by itself a confirmed closure.

Eso sí que duele — AMERICAN SMOKEHOUSE BBQ in Jacksonville, ALDER & OAK in Jacksonville and BIG BLUES BISTRO in Jacksonville owned the top of the the Jacksonville area board. 23 closures confirmed via news, state action, or multiple agreeing social signals. Mija, in plain English: a closure signal is evidence a place may have gone dark; only verified tier-4 records are confirmed permanent closures. May they all wake up tomorrow with sechel.

  • AMERICAN SMOKEHOUSE BBQJacksonvilleclosure score 2
  • ALDER & OAKJacksonvilleclosure score 2
  • BIG BLUES BISTROJacksonvilleclosure score 2
  • DUVAL FISH & CHICKENJacksonvilleclosure score 2
  • SHANGHAI NOBBY'SSt. Augustineclosure score 2

+223 more in this section on the live site.

⚠️ Caution

Chronic Violation Record

174 records this window

Active enforcement targets and repeat offenders: restaurants carrying emergency-order history, chronic 11-year systemic violation patterns, or cross-flag enforcement tiers.

Yo te digo, mija — me because this is a real shanda. In the Jacksonville area, 174 restaurants showed up on the 11-year pattern view, which is just a fancy way of saying these places have been making the same mistakes for over a decade. They are what we call bad actors—people who just won't learn how to keep a kitchen clean, oy gevalt. Mira, hijita, look at the names that lead this mess. GRILLED CHEESE GALLERY and CASA MARINA HOTEL & RESTAURANT are right at the top of this list of chronic offenders. It is not just one slip-up, it is a life of mishegoss in the kitchen. No tiene vergüenza.

  • GRILLED CHEESE GALLERYSt. Augustine6 HP3 INT6 BASScore 636Active bad actorlast visit 02/20/2026
  • CASA MARINA HOTEL & RESTAURANTJacksonville Beach9 HP6 INT20 BASScore 980Active bad actorCurrently Activelast visit 03/26/2026
  • RED LANTERNJacksonville7 HP4 INT13 BASScore 753Active bad actorlast visit 01/13/2026
  • CHURCH'S CHICKEN #10465Jacksonville5 HP2 INT11 BASScore 531Active bad actorlast visit 10/28/2025
  • INDULGENCE SOUTHERN BISTROJacksonville5 HP7 INT13 BASScore 583Active bad actorlast visit 11/12/2025

+169 more in this section on the live site.

✨ Trusted

Most Improved

16 records this window

Restaurants whose recent-window violation count is at least 50% lower than the prior window, with the most recent inspection clean.

Tú me crees? — IHOP #36-233 in Palm Coast, SONNY`S REAL PIT BAR B Q in Palm Coast and CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL 4528 in Jacksonville pulled the heaviest numbers in the Jacksonville area. 16 restaurants met the sustained-improvement test: at least four inspections in each 12-month window, recent HP+Critical counts cut by 50% or more, and an active license. IHOP #36-233 in Palm Coast dropped HP+Critical counts from 12 to 2 across the two 12-month windows (83.3% better). Mija, in plain English: most improved means the recent record got materially cleaner than the prior-year pattern. No tiene vergüenza, ese.

  • IHOP #36-233Palm Coast2 BASPestScore 52
  • SONNY`S REAL PIT BAR B QPalm Coast
  • CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL 4528Jacksonville2 BASPestScore 52
  • BAP BOWL KOREAN FOODJacksonville1 INT6 BASPestScore 66
  • RAGGA SURF CAFE INC.Palm Coast

+11 more in this section on the live site.

Clean Plates

192 records this window

Restaurants with multiple inspections in the current quarter and zero high-priority or intermediate violations.

Mira, hijita, sometimes you see something that actually makes a bubbe kvell. In the Jacksonville area, 192 licensees ran a clean Q2 2026 ledger across multiple inspections. That means they had a clean plate, mija—not a single serious mistake found by the inspectors during this three month window. Oy, mein kind, listen to the names of the ones doing it right: LARRY'S GIANT SUBS, BANANA LEAF ASIAN BISTRO INC, and CROSBY'S CAFE INC. These aren't just lucky one-time things; these are repeat visits with zero high-priority or intermediate violations. Even LARRY'S GIANT SUBS in Jacksonville has stretched a run without any high-priority violations to 12 inspections covering roughly 3 years. Eat something — but not THERE if they hadn't done this!

  • LARRY'S GIANT SUBSFleming Island
  • BANANA LEAF ASIAN BISTRO INCJacksonville4 BASPestScore 54
  • CROSBY'S CAFE INCElkton
  • LATE RISERSSt. Augustine
  • LANA'S KITCHEN CATERING SERVICEJacksonville

+187 more in this section on the live site.

🆕 New

New Owners

98 records this window

DBPR ownership-change records in the last 30 days — "Approve Change Owner Request" actions.

Dios mío, qué barbaridad — WAGYU FACTORY in Jacksonville, BJ FOOD & SNACKS in Jacksonville and MARIE FAMILY RESTAURANT in Jacksonville headlined the the Jacksonville area rundown. 98 ownership-change filings posted in the 30-day window. Trend line: ownership-change volume is even with the last public cut. These are operator turnovers — a new owner-of-record on an existing license — not closures, cancellations, or revocations. Mija, in plain English: an ownership-change filing means a new operator took over the license; it does not mean the restaurant closed. Es muy fea esta historia.

  • WAGYU FACTORYJacksonville
  • BJ FOOD & SNACKSJacksonville
  • MARIE FAMILY RESTAURANTJacksonville
  • FATBOY FRIEDRICEJacksonville
  • SAMMY'S NY PIZZA & PASTAPalm Coast

+93 more in this section on the live site.

Openings

19 records this window

New DBPR licenses plus confirmed opening signals: the places that just joined the map and still need their first public-record track record.

Hablando claro, mija — Current the Jacksonville area tally: 19 opening signals. 30 announced via FB/news/operator signal; 448 DBPR/event-ledger new-license records; 168 reopening, transfer, or reissue records tracked outside the new-opening headline. Current names include FINE FAMILY DINER in Orange Park, OXFORD PLACE in Jacksonville and POTBELLY SANDWICH WORKS in Jacksonville. Ledger type mix: 448 new-license records and 156 reopenings and 30 announcement-led records. Cuisine/venue mix: 175 Unknown and 39 Restaurant. Area concentration: 376 JACKSONVILLE and 52 SAINT AUGUSTINE. Velocity check: 40 opening signals in the last 90 days, 20 in the last 30. Dated opening signals run from 2024-07-02 to 2026-06-30. RiskyEats treats these as opening signals: license issue, announcement, or operational evidence can precede the first routine inspection, so the paragraph does not imply a clean inspection history. Mija, in plain English: an opening signal starts with licensing or source-confirmed evidence, not wishful ribbon-cutting. Pa'l carajo con esa cocina.

  • FINE FAMILY DINEROrange Park
  • OXFORD PLACEJacksonville
  • POTBELLY SANDWICH WORKSJacksonville
  • LAST CALL NEIGHBORHOOD TAVERNJacksonville
  • AVILA BAKERY & CAFEOrange Park

+14 more in this section on the live site.