B for Best: Restaurants Creatively Hiding Their Bad Health Department Grades

Restaurants can face hefty fines for hiding their health department grades. But, that doesn't stop them from doing it.

Nov 04, 2013
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Complex Original

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

Restaurants can face hefty fines for hiding their health inspection grades. But, that doesn't stop them from doing it. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Health Department issued over 800 violations to restaurants who either failed to post their grade, or didn't post their score in a visible place.

Mayor Bloomberg's recently advised against dining in any eatery that didn't receive high scores, saying "Those [restaurant owners] that don’t want to clean up their kitchen, I know why they’re bitching, but I would suggest [you] don’t eat in a restaurant unless they have an A." 

Considering his urge to boycott all restaurants that don't score top-notch grades, it's no wonder restaurants are going to great lengths to creatively disguise their less-than-stellar scores. While we're of the belief that these grades hold little meaning (restaurants can easily win good grades by a variety of shady methods and the grading system is seriously flawed), many New Yorkers base their dining decisions on the letter hanging in a restaurant's window. Here, find some of the most inventive ways eateries have attempted to camoflaugue their imperfect sanitation scores.

RELATED: 10 Great NYC Restaurants with "B" Sanitation Grades

The Alphabet Song

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Where: N/A
Grade: C

A child-friendly establishment, perhaps? Nope. This is a lesson on how to dupe the health inspection game, not a tutorial on your ABCs.

Now You C It, Now You Don't

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Where: Beijing Noodle Cafe, Las Vegas
Grade: C

NYC isn't the only city sneaky enough to try to beat the system. This Sin City noodle spot tried to use their poor sanitation grade to hawk gift cards. We're not buying it. 

Drink the Pain Away

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Where: N/A
Grade: B

Enjoy the free nuts—they're laced with Salmonella.

Close But No Beer

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Where: N/A
Grade: B

We don't know who these inventive folks are, but we salute them for turning an average health inspection grade into an opportunity to drink.

How to Turn a Negative into a Positive 101

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Where: Certé, Midtown West, New York
Grade: B

This sandwich shop wins for best use a "B" letter grade, but maybe not so much on being forthcoming to its customers.

B is For Brunch

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Where: Astor Row Cafe, Harlem, New York
Grade: B

While we applaud how this cafe transformed a lackluster grade into an advertising opportunity, we feel like they should be a bit more forthcoming about their rodent issues.

Explanation Necessary

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Where: N/A
Grade: C

Rather than hide its below average score, this establishment chose to defend itself while pointing out the sometimes arbitrary standards the health department sets. A valiant effort, but considering that a C denotes a minimum of 28 viloations, it's unlikely not having an extra sink was this eatery's only failing. 

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