There are lots of things to keep in mind when you’re considering where to live. One popular question is “who are the neighbors?” This is especially important when the building has commercial tenants as well as residential tenants. And when those commercial tenants are restaurants, you should be particularly vigilant. Most restaurants are well-run and clean and won’t give you any problems (and will be really convenient as well!). Some aren’t, though, and the ones that aren’t might “deliver” you some unwanted guests. There are some things to keep in mind when renting above restaurants.
Restaurants to Avoid Living Above
We found six examples of restaurants—including a proud holder of a Michelin star—that have had problems over the past few years. Keep in mind that restaurants are inspected once a year and that the restaurants on this list have worked hard to fix the problems. (They’re all still open.) The point here is that you should always be vigilant as a renter—sometimes, even restaurants you wouldn’t expect to have problems do.
You can also refer to the NYC Department of Health’s guidelines for scoring and grading restaurants to learn more about our rankings.
Tori Shin
Location: 1193 1st Avenue, Manhattan.
Tori Shin is one of four NYC Michelin-starred restaurants to have a C rating from the City health department last year, and had more violations than any of the other three.
Baluchi’s Indian Food
Location: 1724 2nd Avenue, Manhattan.
Business Insider named this spot its Dirtiest Restaurant in New York City in 2012.
Annella
Location: 222 Franklin Street, Brooklyn.
Also listed on Business Insider’s 2012 list, Annella was cited for “adulterated, contaminated, cross-contaminated” food and for not having anywhere to wash your hands in or around the food preparation area.
E.A.T.
Location: 1064 Madison Avenue, Manhattan.
Renters may have problems renting above restaurants like E.A.T. Here’s video of a rat in the bread baskets.
Trattoria Alba
Location:233 East 34th Street, Manhattan.
This restaurant is a real survivor – it was in a New York State Senate report listing the 10 dirtiest restaurants in New York in 2003-04. There were some more recent issues in multiple 2012 inspections as well.
The City Bakery
Location: 3 West 18th Street, Manhattan.
Those pretzel croissants and chocolate chip cookies are really, really good. But their most recent inspection, in December 2013, turned up some problems.
Dishonorable Mention
Magnolia Bakery, in the West Village, was shut down briefly in February 2013 after health inspectors found mouse droppings in the basement. Their banana pudding still rocks, though.
Editor’s Note: We updated this article to enhance readability.
