Garodnick Targets Food Safety With Letter Grades for Vendors

Council Member Garodnick reintroduced legislation that would lead to letter grades for sidewalk food vendors, a move that would give customers the same information about for vendors as they will soon get for brick-and-mortar restaurants.

The bill, first introduced in 2009 during the last City Council term, pre-dates the Department of Health’s recently approved plan to require restaurants to post letter-graded health inspection scores in their windows — though it will offer the same benefits to street-food customers.

“Whether it’s a falafel, a taco — or even a hot dog — consumers deserve to know that the food that they are eating has been prepared and handled properly, no matter where they buy it,” Garodnick said. “There is no reason that vendors cannot be held to the same standards as restaurants.”

He added: “This is about health, consumer protection and fairness across the food services industry. It can be a badge of honor if vendors maintain clean establishments.”