Cooked?
Thai Basil
- resultFail
- critical violations1
- last inspectedJune 17, 2026
- address132 Newbury St, Boston 02116
Is Thai Basil clean?
Thai Basil is currently Fail from Boston Inspectional Services, Health Division, from an inspection on June 17, 2026. Inspectors wrote up 1 critical violation — the kind most directly linked to foodborne illness. On Cooked's ladder that reads cooked 🪳.
What did inspectors find at Thai Basil?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on June 17, 2026, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- ⚠️(A) (B) and (C)(1) (4)-(16) Demonstration (Pf) • There are four Allergen Awareness certificates posted and all expired in January of 2026; have at least one full-time person on staff go through the Allergen Awareness training and provide an updated certificate before the reinspection.(A) (B) and (C)(1) (4)-(16) Demonstration (Pf) • There are four Allergen Awareness certificates posted and all expired in January of 2026; have at least one full-time person on staff go through the Allergen Awareness training and provide an updated certificate before the reinspection.
- ⚠️In-Use Utensils Between-Use Storage (C) • Observed utensils stored in 70F and in 117F water; utensils should be stored on a clean and sanitized surface in water 135F and above or in cool running water.In-Use Utensils Between-Use Storage (C) • Observed utensils stored in 70F and in 117F water; utensils should be stored on a clean and sanitized surface in water 135F and above or in cool running water.
- ⚠️(A)(2) and (B) Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food Hot and Cold Holding (P) • Whole shell raw eggs 63F rehydrated rice noodles 70F cooked rice for fried rice 70F; hold raw shell eggs at 45F and below and all other TCS foods at 41F and below; person in charge placed more ice in container holding raw shell eggs and placed rice noodles and cooked rice into the walk-in refrigerator to properly cool to 41F.critical(A)(2) and (B) Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food Hot and Cold Holding (P) • Whole shell raw eggs 63F rehydrated rice noodles 70F cooked rice for fried rice 70F; hold raw shell eggs at 45F and below and all other TCS foods at 41F and below; person in charge placed more ice in container holding raw shell eggs and placed rice noodles and cooked rice into the walk-in refrigerator to properly cool to 41F.
- ⚠️Backflow Prevention (P) • 6-17-2026: Upon reinspection work has been done on the 2-bay sink and two air gaps have been installed. Have your licensed plumber pull permits and provide the permit number after the City Health Plumber has inspected and approved of the work completed.criticalBackflow Prevention (P) • 6-17-2026: Upon reinspection work has been done on the 2-bay sink and two air gaps have been installed. Have your licensed plumber pull permits and provide the permit number after the City Health Plumber has inspected and approved of the work completed.
- ⚠️Hand Drying Provision (Pf) • At the handwashing sink closest to the cookline there was no approved hand drying device; corrected on site after the observation hand sinks should be fully stocked at all times.Hand Drying Provision (Pf) • At the handwashing sink closest to the cookline there was no approved hand drying device; corrected on site after the observation hand sinks should be fully stocked at all times.
When was Thai Basil last inspected?
Thai Basil has 81 inspections on record going back to April 18, 2007. The 12 most recent are shown below.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| June 17, 2026 | Fail | |
| June 10, 2026 | Fail | |
| July 17, 2025 | — | |
| January 6, 2025 | — | |
| June 14, 2024 | Pass | |
| June 7, 2024 | Fail | |
| March 18, 2024 | Pass | |
| March 11, 2024 | Fail | |
| January 3, 2024 | — | |
| September 25, 2023 | Pass | |
| September 19, 2023 | Fail | |
| August 25, 2023 | Pass |
Thai Basil vs Back Bay
Back Bay runs 81% clean across 519 tracked restaurants — 417 clean, 46 mid, 50 cooked.
Against the 519 spots Cooked tracks in Back Bay, this one comes out cleaner than 11% of them.
Other spots in Back Bay
How Boston grades restaurants
Boston reports inspections as a pass or a fail, with no score and no letter. What separates a bad fail from a trivial one is the violation severity ladder: a single star is a minor issue, two stars is more serious, and three stars marks a critical foodborne-illness risk factor — temperature abuse, bad handwashing, cross-contamination. A restaurant can fail on paperwork alone, which is not the same as failing on food safety. Cooked splits Boston fails accordingly: a fail with a three-star violation reads cooked, a fail on minor items only reads mid.
Source: Boston Inspectional Services, Health Division via Analyze Boston. Cooked refreshes this data daily — this listing's most recent inspection is dated June 17, 2026. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.