Boston, MA Public Health Rules: Restaurant Grade Cards (2026)

A. " The ordinance, added by Ord. 2016 c. " During the ordinance's first year of implementation, posting was optional and the grade instead had to be made available on the city's Mayor's Food Court website: that transitional window has long since closed, so posting is now mandatory citywide. A business that fails to post its grade, or that alters the designation it received, is subject to a $300 fine for each offense, and the code specifies that each day of non-compliance constitutes a new offense, so penalties accumulate daily until the placard goes up.

5 allows a person aggrieved by the requirements of the section to seek an administrative appeal directly to the Inspectional Services Department, and if ISD's final decision is unfavorable, the operator may seek relief in any court of competent jurisdiction under the laws of the Commonwealth. Enforcement sits with ISD's Health Division, which issues the grade in the first place and can inspect for a missing or falsified placard on the same visits that generate the underlying health inspection.