L.A.’s Restaurant Grading System

This isn’t entirely travel related, but might come in handy on a first-timers visit to Tinsel Town.

For the first couple weeks living in Los Angeles I couldn’t figure out what the heck those letters in
the window were there for and after spending sometime in the city there after I
can’t begin to tell you how many stories have come from these nifty grading sheets. Like the time I ate at a
Chinese hole-in-the-wall restaurant with a big, bold, red letter C, later thinking I was going to die and
also the time I dined at a Mexican spot with a B and actually got food poisoning. Those times and signs are
moments I will never forget. This, my friends, is the best sign spotting you can do while in Los Angeles. The little A,
B, and C letters proudly on display or tucked away in the far corner of any licensed restaurant window in Los
Angeles are compliments of the Los Angeles Department of Health
Services, Public Health and Environmental Health.

The purpose to is to give hungry customers a sense of dining in a thoroughly spic and span environment, reduce
potential for food borne illness and the spread of communicable disease. Gotta love Public Health. But DO NOT, I repeat
DO NOT, let the signs lead you to believe you will be having the best tasting food. You’ll be heavily let down at
a lot of letter A restaurants. I recommend leaving that portion up to Zagat. But
If you’re curious as to how they do the grading and inspections I encourage you all to do visit their web site. It
could save your life.