Restaurant Letter Grading Officially Kicks Off Today

Beginning today, the Department of Health is implementing its new letter-grading system, which will require restaurants throughout the city to display their grades -- A, B, or C -- near their entrances.

Per a press release, the DOH began its new inspections yesterday, and awarded the first "A" to Spark's Deli in Long Island City. The DOH has also debuted a new restaurant inspection site where users can search restaurants by name, borough, cuisine, and score.

The site is far more straightforward than the old one, but its neighborhood definitions are a little dodgy: A search for restaurants in Boerum Hill, for example, turns up places like Der Schwarze Kölner, which is in Fort Greene, and Franny's, which is in Prospect Heights. So while they're busy grading everyone else, the DOH might want to brush up on its geography lessons.

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