NYC Mayor Unveils Restaurant Inspection Program
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Deputy Senate Majority Leader Jeff Klein announced that New York City is updating its restaurant inspection system to improve sanitary conditions and give consumers more information.
Under the new model, the Health Department will increase inspections for less sanitary restaurants and require all establishments to conspicuously post letter grades -- a measure championed by Klein to keep the public better informed about inspection results. The new system will be phased in over the next two years. This approach will concentrate city resources on the restaurants that pose the greatest risk to public health and place no additional burden on establishments that maintain sanitary conditions.
“We know New York City’s restaurants are the best in the world and we want them to also be the cleanest,” Bloomberg said. “This new system will encourage the less sanitary restaurants to clean up -- and won’t punish the good guys. As sanitation improves, so will business. The more residents and tourists can trust the food they buy in New York City restaurants, the more likely they are to patronize them.”
Food-related illness is a source of growing public concern in New York City. Complaints about food-borne illness have increased in recent years, and rodent infestations are a common problem in restaurants, officials said. The Health Department reports signs of rodents in 25 percent of the establishments inspected.