Tracking Health Code Violations at Brooklyn Restaurants

One of the coolest features on the new website EveryBlock is its constantly updated feed of restaurant inspections (by borough, ZIP code or block). We used it to find out which Brooklyn restaurants and bars have racked up the most violations in recent city inspections. (Happily, there was no evidence of extreme nastiness a la the Village Taco Bell/KFC incident last year.) The Dept. of Health & Mental Hygiene scores businesses on a violation point system; basically, a score above 28 points is bad news. What follows is a list of some of the worst offenders over the past few weeks. It’s worth noting that Vegetarian Palate and Cherry Tree have reopened (we’re not sure about Amette Jamaican), so they’ve presumably addressed the violations:

-Amette Jamaican (192 Duffield St.) Received 88 violation points during a January 10th inspection and was closed down. Inspectors found evidence of mice and crappy plumbing.

-Vegetarian Palate (258 Flatbush Ave.) Received 66 violation points during a January 23rd inspection and was closed down. Inspectors said the restaurant wasn’t vermin proof and saw tobacco use, eating, drinking in food preparation, food storage or dishwashing area.

-Cherry Tree Bar (65 4th Ave.) Received 63 violation points during a January 8th inspection and was closed down. Inspectors said lighting was inadequate and the bar’s hand-washing stations weren’t up to snuff.

-Flatbush Farm (76 St. Marks Ave.) Received 61 violation points during a January 11th inspection. Inspectors found evidence of flying insects, roaches and rats. Update: They apparently cleaned up their act quickly; inspectors only gave the place 14 violation points during a January 15th inspection.

Restaurant Inspections [EveryBlock]