Tampa, FL, IHOP, cited for 12 violations in Hillsborough County; Follow-up needed

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An IHOP at 408 E Bearss Ave in Tampa, Florida, received notification from the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation after inspectors found 12 health violations on August 26, 2024. The Hillsborough County popular breakfast and brunch eatery will require a follow-up inspection, state records showed.

This is What Happened During The Inspection

The inspection revealed 4 high-priority, 4 intermediate, and 4 basic violations.

High-priority infractions included food safety issues by staff—one employee broke raw shell eggs and proceeded to handle ready-to-eat foods without cleansing hands.

The presence of live flies in multiple areas of the restaurant presents an additional safety concern. Furthermore, a stop sale was issued due to temperature violations, as a container of raw waffle batter was reportedly left out too long, lacking necessary refrigeration.

Butter also exceeded safe temperature limits before being placed back in the freezer.

Intermediate violations contained a lack of written procedures for natural events, missing proof of required employee training, and wrong date marking of ready-to-eat foods.

Basic violations included mold-like substances in the ice machine, a missing dumpster drain plug, and food residue on clean dishes.

Despite these issues, the restaurant maintains a 4.3-star rating from 3,166 Google reviews.

One recent customer, Dylan Riley, praised the service, stating, "BEST experience at IHOP ever server was very energetic and made it an experience to remember his name was Michael."

Although this IHOP location in Tampa was not ordered to close, it must address the violations before the next inspection.

NOTE: Please note that an inspection report, per the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation, provides a snapshot of the conditions observed during the inspection