Popular Orlando Mexican Bar, Habanero's, Shut Down After State Inspection - 4th Closure

Photo byT.Tseng, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Eating Mexican and Latin cuisine can land itself to festive meal times. After all, this type of food pairs very well with drinks like margaritas and tequila. Some popular Florida eateries in this category are Cactus Flower and Chile Verde, as just a few examples. However, one eatery in this category - Orlando's Habanero's Mexican Grill was recently temporarily shut down after a state inspection.

About Habanero's Mexican Grill: This eatery is in the vicinity of UCF's campus and the reviews make it clear that it is a festive place that serves typical Mexican fare like chili relleno and birria served up with cool cocktails.

Habanero's has been reviewed on Google reviews over 1,000 times and earns 4.1 out of 5 stars. A reviewer named Chuck wrote, in part:

"They nailed it!... I had a plate with a chile relleno, an enchilada, and a taco. All of them beef. They were absolutely amazing. Best flavored beef I've ever had!... (The) refried beans were excellent. My wife did a vegetarian combo and was quite pleased. We had a pitcher of top-shelf margarita that was superb..."

What Happened At Inspection?: According to data from the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, an inspection occurred on July 9, 2024. At that time, 13 violations were found.

Examples of basic violations were pork being thawed at room temperature in a prep sink, the observation of dead roaches and egg sacks, and a bucket of lard being kept on the floor.

High-priority violations came from the observation of live roaches, cold foods like tomatoes, cheese, lettuce, and guacamole being held at temperatures over 41 degrees, and the dish machine sanitizer being at improper strength.

As a result of some of the above violations, the restaurant was temporarily shut down. A follow-up inspection on July 10, 2024, yielded no violations so the restaurant was free to reopen.

This is not the first closure for this eatery on Collegiate Way. It also had closures in October of 2022, August of 2022, and February of 2022.

Please note that an inspection is one moment in time and not necessarily how a restaurant conducts itself every day.