City Council Launches Restaurant Inspection Survey

A cook prepares food at a Manhattan restaurant rated with a Health Department 'A' grade is seen March 7, 2011, in New York City. Preliminary results from the initial six months of the city's new restaurant health grading system indicate that restaurants are taking steps to improve their food safety practices. Of the restaurants that received an initial 'B' grade, 44 percent of them implemented enough improvements to earn an 'A' grade on their second inspection. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

NEW YORK—Have you ever wondered how accurate the city’s restaurant rating system is? A City Council survey calls for restaurateurs’ feedback to analyze the system.

As part of the City Council’s oversight of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) and in response to mounting concerns raised by city restaurateurs regarding the restaurant inspection process, Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn and Health Committee Chair Maria del Carmen Arroyo announced the launch of a comprehensive restaurant inspection survey on Wednesday.

Restaurant owners around the city are encouraged to participate in the survey, which can be found online at www.surveymonkey.com/restaurantinspection. An oversight hearing will be held next month following the collection of the survey data. 

The survey is divided into two sections. The first part asks for background information about the food establishment and solicits views on DOHMH’s inspection process and letter-grading system. The second part seeks details about violations issued during each inspection from 2008 to the present, along with costs accrued in connection with the payment of fines, consultants, and improvements. 

“I am troubled by the wave of complaints the council has received from restaurants—even the ones that get A’s—about the fairness and inconsistency of the food safety inspection process,” said Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “Any initiative—especially 18 months after establishment—calls for scrutiny. With this survey, we hope to learn more about what is and isn’t working, including whether the grading system has been implemented fairly. The participation of restaurateurs in this analysis is critical, and we look forward to hearing their input.”

In July 2010, DOHMH began requiring food service establishments to post letter grades corresponding with scores reflecting sanitary inspections during which restaurants receive points for violations.