Restaurant Health Inspections, Explained.
How restaurants are inspected, how SafeDine scores are calculated, and what to look for when dining out.
How SafeDine Scores Work
Understand the 0-100 scoring algorithm, violation weights, recency weighting, and what makes a score go up or down.
What Violations Mean
The difference between high priority, intermediate, and basic violations — and which ones matter most for your health.
Quick Overview
Health inspections are conducted by local and state health departments to ensure restaurants meet food safety standards. Inspectors check for proper food handling, temperature control, hygiene practices, and facility cleanliness.
SafeDine takes this raw inspection data from official government sources and converts it into an easy-to-understand 0-100 safety score. Every restaurant starts at 100 points, with deductions for violations found during inspections.
Our scoring algorithm weighs recent inspections more heavily than older ones, and high priority violations (direct health hazards) have a greater impact than basic best-practice violations.
Our Commitment to Transparency
SafeDine scores are based exclusively on official government inspection data. We never accept payment to alter scores, and our scoring algorithm is documented publicly. Our goal is to help you make informed dining decisions based on real food safety data.