Does the Health Dept. inspect restaurants in your State and do they have the inspection score posted for the public to see? Does the restaurant Health score deturman whether or not you eat there?

In Alabama The Health Dept inspects the restaurants every 120 days and gives them a score. 100 is a perfict score and I dont eat at one they is below 90. The score is posted by law for the public to see.

Same here in North Carolina, but not sure on how frequent the law mandates...it seems like once per quarter is right but don't quote me...also it definately has a part in whether i eat there also, I'm very anal about how clean the place and people are where my food is prepared...

Me, too. I'm not totally anal about it but if I see that a restaurant has flunked I generally won't go there. A few years ago my wife told me about one I'd never been to so we looked it up on the county's website and the findings were so bad over time I told her no F way would I go there. I'm glad I have a pretty strong stomach because I'm sure I've eaten in plenty of places that I would've skipped had I known what the kitchens were like.

The best is to call the the health department when you witness infractions.

They love that. It gets their hit ratio up.

The Health Dept. in Kentucky grades us on a letter scale. We have to post the letter grade at the entrance to the restaurant. I think it is a great plan. The desire to keep your "A" is pretty great, at least to anyone who cares about what they are doing. Most of the places I have seen that have B's and C's are fast food places...

In Florida even supermarkets are given one of three grades by the state health inspector. Either a "good, fair or poor". They are posted for everyone to see. This includes the whole store, not just the Deli or Meat departments. Depending on the inspector (and that's the problem) even a crack under a door can get you a "critical" which counts against your total grade. I've seen where one inspector gives 11 criticals and still gives a "Fair" rating, and the next one gives 4 criticals and gives the store a "Poor" rating.
I think it matters most which side of the bed they got up on that morning

I used to read the restraunt closures section from time to time. I think its a special section of the lifestyle section in the newspaper. They have closures for stuff like rats and general uncleanliness and on the extreme end, they got a few chinese food places for serving cat meat. I think those places were closed for good though. Restraunts get a letter grade here in califonia. I still eat at B and C places but its always for authentic chinese or mexican food. Most franchised places always get an A.

I am a successful New York City Restauranteur,and I can tell you that the Health Department(at least here)does not protect the public one little bit. Inspections are only once a year,and are conducted by inexperienced inspectors. In fact,many of them were traffic cops a month ago. Many restaurants are indeed filthy and do pose a health risk. Unfortunately,those places can go on running for years. But most restaurants are quite acceptible in thier practices. And they do get a bad rap. If your favorite restaurant was sited for having live vermin,my guess is you would be appalled. Did you know that having one fly found can be considered vermin? That not having a cover on your trash can in your OFFICE comes with a pretty severe violation. Do not believe everything you read friends. Government agencies are run very poorly and are there for one main reason. To generate money.

quote:

Originally posted by paul:
In Florida even supermarkets are given one of three grades by the state health inspector. Either a "good, fair or poor". They are posted for everyone to see. This includes the whole store, not just the Deli or Meat departments. Depending on the inspector (and that's the problem) even a crack under a door can get you a "critical" which counts against your total grade. I've seen where one inspector gives 11 criticals and still gives a "Fair" rating, and the next one gives 4 criticals and gives the store a "Poor" rating.
I think it matters most which side of the bed they got up on that morning

Yes Alabama does Supermarkets too.

I spent about 15 minutes clicking on the NYC listings on the DOH web site. I don't think I found a single place that did NOT have evidence of live rats/mice.

Exactly Sobek. My places have had them. Everyone does. Mice and rats outnumber people here. Extermination service is required once monthly. We do it twice weekly by one of the best companies in town. Yet on occasion they do appear. An impossible situation to say the least. And networks like CBS continually run reports like "Eat at your own risk" and hurt places that are clean as hell by pointing out minor violations. Forgetting to mention that although there were violations the establishment in fact PASSED their inspection. In over 20 years of operating I have never seen so much as one inspection not yield at least one violation. And that goes for everyone.

[QUOTE] they got a few chinese food places for serving cat meat. QUOTE]

Sweet! But I thought they ate Dogs in China. Or is that Vietnam?

quote:

Originally posted by El Presidente:
[QUOTE] they got a few chinese food places for serving cat meat. QUOTE]

Sweet! But I thought they ate Dogs in China. Or is that Vietnam?

Vietnam, and also the Philippeans(sp?) .


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