How to Look Up Brooklyn Restaurant Health Inspection Scores (2026)

Your Right to Know: NYC Inspection Data Is Public

New York City's restaurant inspection data is one of the most comprehensive publicly available food-safety datasets in the world. Every inspection visit, every finding, every score, and every grade for every food service establishment in all five boroughs is logged and made freely available. Brooklyn diners, food writers, researchers, and public health professionals all use the same data.

The primary dataset is hosted on the NYC Open Data portal under identifier 43nn-pn8j. A simpler consumer-facing lookup is available directly through the DOHMH website.

Method 1: DOHMH Restaurant Inspection Search (Fastest for Consumers)

For a quick lookup of a single restaurant's current grade and inspection history:

1. Navigate to a816-restaurantinspection.nyc.gov
2. Enter the restaurant name in the search box
3. Select "Brooklyn" as the borough (or let the search return all boroughs)
4. Click search

Results show the establishment's current grade, the date of the most recent inspection, and the score. You can click through to see the specific findings listed for each inspection visit.

This tool is optimized for speed. It won't give you the ability to do bulk analysis, but for quickly checking a single restaurant before making a reservation, it's the right tool.

Method 2: NYC Open Data Portal (Full Historical and Analytical Data)

For more detailed or historical analysis:

1. Go to data.cityofnewyork.us
2. Search for "DOHMH New York City Restaurant Inspection Results" or enter dataset ID 43nn-pn8j
3. Use the filter panel to narrow by DBA (restaurant name), BORO (Brooklyn = "3"), ZIP code, or GRADE
4. Each row in the dataset represents one finding from one inspection — so a single inspection with five findings produces five rows

The dataset fields most useful for diners include:

• INSPECTION DATE: When the inspection occurred
• SCORE: Total points for that inspection
• GRADE: The letter grade assigned (if any; initial inspections above 13 don't have a grade until re-inspection)
• CRITICAL FLAG: Whether a specific finding was critical or general
• VIOLATION DESCRIPTION: Plain-language description of the finding
• INSPECTION TYPE: Whether this was an initial inspection, re-inspection, or complaint-driven inspection

What to Look for When Reading the Data

Inspection History Length

Look at how many inspection cycles appear in the record. A restaurant with five years of inspections shows a much clearer pattern than one with a single recent visit. Consistent Grade A performance across multiple cycles is a strong positive signal.

Critical vs. General Findings

The CRITICAL FLAG column tells you which findings were critical (directly associated with foodborne illness risk) and which were general. A restaurant with only general findings is a different profile from one with recurring critical findings, even if both currently display Grade A.

Improvement Trends

If a restaurant had a problematic period (Grade B or C) two or three years ago but has since maintained consistent Grade A scores, that trajectory is meaningful. Conversely, if findings are escalating over time, that's worth noting.

Complaint-Driven Inspections

The INSPECTION TYPE field distinguishes routine inspections from those triggered by consumer complaints. Repeated complaint-driven inspections for the same establishment may indicate patterns that the routine cycle hasn't fully resolved.

Third-Party Aggregators

Several apps and websites aggregate DOHMH data and display it in consumer-friendly formats. These are generally pulling from the same 43nn-pn8j dataset but may have different update frequencies or display different subsets of the data. When using any third-party source, check when the data was last refreshed — the primary NYC Open Data portal is always the authoritative source.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a mobile app for checking Brooklyn restaurant grades?

DOHMH doesn't operate an official mobile app, but several third-party apps have been built using NYC Open Data. Check that any app you use cites 43nn-pn8j as its data source and indicates how frequently it's updated.

How current is the data in NYC Open Data?

The dataset is updated regularly, typically within days of an inspection being completed. For the very most recent inspection of a specific establishment, the DOHMH website search may reflect results slightly faster than the Open Data portal in some cases.

What if a restaurant isn't in the database?

New establishments may not yet have an inspection on record. Establishments that have been permanently closed are eventually removed from active status but their historical records typically remain in the dataset. If you can't find a restaurant by name, try searching by address or zip code.

Can I download the entire Brooklyn dataset?

Yes. NYC Open Data allows you to export the full dataset as CSV, JSON, or other formats. You can filter to Brooklyn (BORO = 3) before downloading to reduce file size.