Compliant ParkPractical · August 13, 2026
Your hood is cleaned. Can you prove it in thirty seconds?
Fire compliance is judged on records as much as condition, and FDNY is moving toward digital logs. A clean hood with no paperwork is an argument you will lose.
Notes
What changed, what is coming, and what usually goes wrong.
Rule changes, seasonal patterns and the practical things that keep a New York restaurant from losing points. Written for owners, not lawyers.
Practical · July 6, 2026
Your last three inspections are a prediction, not a history
A violation code that appears more than once is telling you a condition was never fixed. It will be cited again, and it is where your points are hiding.
Practical · July 2, 2026
A temperature log written on the morning of the inspection helps nobody
Cold at 41°F, hot at 140°F. The readings are the easy part — what an inspector is reading is whether the checks are routine or performed for their benefit.
Practical · June 29, 2026
The violations that cost almost nothing to fix and get written up anyway
Bare-hand contact, an inaccessible hand sink and uncovered food are among the easiest findings to avoid and the most commonly cited. None of them need a budget.
Practical · June 25, 2026
One food protection certificate is compliance on paper and a gap in practice
The rule is a certified supervisor on site whenever you are operating. With one certified person, a holiday or a sick day puts you out of compliance without anyone noticing.
Practical · June 22, 2026
Build the binder in the order you will be asked, not the order it arrived
Most restaurants have the documents. Very few can produce a specific one in under a minute, which is the only test that matters on the day.