Rodents in an Anthony’s. Roaches in salt. A Denny’s. Miami to Palm Beach restaurant filth

National chains, roaches in flour and flies on donuts highlight this week’s Sick and Shut Down list of South Florida restaurants that failed state inspection.

So, in memory of Mills Lane (RIP), let’s get it on!

WE DO WRITE THE RULES. HERE THEY ARE: What follows comes from Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation restaurant inspections in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Monroe counties. A restaurant that fails inspection remains closed until passing an inspection.

If you see a problem and want a place inspected, contact the DBPR. We don’t do the inspections, control who gets inspected nor how strictly the inspector inspects.

We don’t include all violations, just the most moving, whether internally or literally moving (because it’s alive or once was alive). Some violations get corrected immediately after the inspector points them out. But in those situations, ask yourself, why did the violations exist in the first place? And, how long would they have remained if not for the inspection?

We report without passion or prejudice, but with several slices of humor (and occasional indignation).

In alphabetical order....

Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza, 21065 Powerline Rd., Boca Raton: Routine inspection, eight total violations, five High Priority violations.

Meatballs? Bacteria balls, still way too warm after being in the cooler overnight got hit with a Stop Sale.

The inspector notice that wasn’t sausage on the floor, but about 50-plus rodent droppings under a shelf that was “across from the dish area” with “no door between the dish area, kitchen and storage room.”

Amazingly, all the defecating rodents apparently were gone by the next day as Anthony’s passed re-inspection last Friday and were open on the popular pizza night.

Blessing Restaurant, 8427 NE Second Ave., Miami: Routine inspection, 12 total violations, two High Priority violations.

We know the World Cup is on, but nobody can take a few seconds during post-foul writhing to do some cleaning so that the inspector doesn’t see “food storage shelves soiled throughout property” and that the “interior of oven/microwave has accumulation of black substance/grease/food debris?”

“Stored food not covered...soup and pasta in cooler not covered.” Come on, man. Plastic wrap can’t be that hard to find. There’s a Presidente (that would fail inspection two days later) a few blocks away.

READ MORE: A bakery with a live rodent (again), 3 Presidentes & a 7-Eleven: Miami’s Gross Grocers

“Observed 12 dead roaches on the floor throughout the kitchen area.” Wonder if they were killed by feet or by food.

As for the running of the live roaches, about 25 were on the wall behind the three-compartment sink and 20 were on the floor behind the three-compartment sink. Another six were “crawling on the door in the kitchen area.”

Blessing took two days, then came back to pass re-inspection.

Denny’s, 3151 Powerline Rd., Oakland Park: Routine inspection, eight total violations, four High Priority violations.

The only thing that can close a Denny’s in a good-sized metro area? An inspection.

Or, more pointedly, roaches and unsanitized dishes, which is kind of a big deal considering that’s what you eat off of when you sit down at Denny’s, whether at 8 a.m., 8 p.m. or 3 a.m.

The dishwasher wasn’t sanitizing at minimum strength. One roach was on a wall near the cookline and three were on a shelf on the cookline.

Washed hands stayed drippy at the front counter dining room handwash sink with no paper towels or blower.

The inspector dropped Stop Sales on french fries and puppy mix (puppy mix?) both of which measured at 52 degrees (needed to be 41 or under) despite a while in a reach-in cooler.

Despite the roaches, Denny’s somehow passed a same-day re-inspection.

Dunkin’ Donuts, 6919 SW 18th St., Boca Raton: Complaint inspection, seven total violations, three High Priority violations.

A Sick and Shut Down List without a Dunkin is like a Dunkin without glazed donuts.

“Handwash sink removed from food preparation/dishwashing area. It must be reinstalled in the same location where it was,next to prep area by the take out window.”

Somebody left the takeout window open without turning on the air curtain. So, in came the flies and out came the Stop Sales as they landed on coffee rolls at the front counter, glazed munchkins, chocolate glazed munchkins, a caramel dispenser, the coffee machines.

Dunkin’ passed re-inspection on Friday, Dec. 2. Presumably with the window closed.

Fritanga Naiara, 6905 W. 12th Ave., Hialeah: Routine inspection, 15 total violations, eight High Priority violations.

Once again, our bête noire appears. “Clean utensils stored between equipment and a wall...knife between a wall and the three compartment sink.”

The handwash sink had been taken out of the kitchen area and needs to be put back.

Maybe that’s why a food server, “handled soiled dishes or utensils and then picked up plated food, served food, or prepared a beverage without washing hands.”

And, maybe that’s why an employee “cracked eggs than touched clean utensils without change gloves and wash hands.”

That’s fine for home — really, it isn’t, but we know most folks do it anyway — but that’s not getting it done in the pay-for-food world.

Another reach-in cooler that either needs adjustment or needs to be cannibalized for parts. Cooked chicken in the cooler from the day before was still a good 10 degrees too warm. Stop Sale. Basura.

Fritanga passed re-inspection the next day.

Palm Beach Diner, 610 S. Dixie Hwy., Lantana: Routine inspection, eight total violations, five High Priority violations.

Pretty basic name on a place that couldn’t achieve basic cleanliness.

No, you can’t cool your food by storing it in the ice machine ice. The sour cream containers touching the ice get the ice touched with a Stop Sale.

The dead roach count reached five. The live roach count was nine, one of which was on a sheet pan.

No paper towels or mechanical hand drying device at either the handwash sink on the cookline or in the warewashing area. Oh, honestly, Brawny was just on sale recently and the select-a-size that goes down to a quarter of a full-size sheet.

Two days later, eight roaches inside an unused walk-in cooler caused a failed re-inspection. A re-re-inspection was passed on Friday, Dec. 2 (the inspectors seemed to be conscious of weekend revenue).

Punjab Indian Restaurant, 1801 N. Federal Hwy., Boca Raton: Routine inspection, eight total violations, four High Priority violations.

Regular readers might remember this place’s sewage backup problems in September. This time, they had a “plumbing system in disrepair” at the handwash sink in the front of the cookline.

You know we couldn’t have a week go by without “accumulation of black/green mold-like substance in the interior of the ice machine/bin.”

As far as the cutting boards, they were “soiled and are no longer cleanable.”

Also, dough, cooked beef, raw beef were in plastic to-go bags with direct contact, which is a no-no as those aren’t food grade bags.

But that’s better than “five live roaches on and inside of not-in-use dough machine” on a kitchen prep table and “10 live roaches on that same table, on an in-use cutting board, rolling pin and in inside salt and flour on same prep table.” Yeah, that’s a Stop Sale on the salt and flour.

Punjab came correct for the following day’s re-inspection.