Restaurant Closures: See Which Restaurants Were Recently Shut Down by Health Inspectors

When a restaurant is closed by the health department, the information is usually public. But finding out about it can be surprisingly difficult.

Take Barking Dog in Hell's Kitchen. The restaurant was shut down twice in two days following inspections that found pest-related violations. That is the kind of information most diners would probably want to know - but unless you happen to search through a city health department database, you are unlikely to come across it.

And Barking Dog is hardly an isolated example.

Health departments across the country publish inspection and closure records, but those databases can be difficult to search, inconsistent from city to city, and easy to overlook. A restaurant can be closed for serious health violations while the information remains buried in a government database.

That's why we built Recently Closed on GrubVetter.

Recently Closed makes it easy to see restaurants that have been closed by health authorities in the cities we cover. Listings are updated daily and link directly to each restaurant's complete inspection and violation history, so you can see why the restaurant was closed - not just that it was closed.

For example, in New York City:

• Pho Bang in Flushing was closed following findings involving roaches and contaminated food.
• The Chubby Crab in Chinatown was closed after inspectors found mice and roaches.

These records come from public health department data. GrubVetter simply makes that information easier to find, search, and understand.

Recently Closed is currently available for New York City, Boston, and Las Vegas, with more cities coming soon.

Before you make your next reservation - or walk through the door - take a look.

Know before you go.