Cooked?
Empire Soul Food Restaurant
- gradeGrade A
- inspection score12 pts
- critical violations1
- last inspectedOctober 14, 2025
- address547 Lenox Avenue, Manhattan 10037
- cuisineSoul Food
- phone6467249856
Is Empire Soul Food Restaurant clean?
Empire Soul Food Restaurant is currently Grade A from NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), from an inspection on October 14, 2025. Inspectors wrote up 1 critical violation — the kind most directly linked to foodborne illness. On Cooked's ladder that reads clean 😇.
What did inspectors find at Empire Soul Food Restaurant?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on October 14, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- 🧫food contact surfaces dirtyDesign, construction, materials used or maintenance of food contact surface improper. Surface not easily cleanable, sanitized and maintained.
- 🚰handwashing sink issuescriticalNo hand washing facility in or adjacent to toilet room or within 25 feet of a food preparation, food service or ware washing area. Hand washing facility not accessible, obstructed or used for non-hand washing purposes. No hot and cold running water or water at inadequate pressure. No soap or acceptable hand-drying device.
When was Empire Soul Food Restaurant last inspected?
Empire Soul Food Restaurant has 4 inspections on record going back to March 18, 2025, averaging 51 points.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| October 14, 2025 | Grade A | 12 pts |
| April 10, 2025 | no grade issued ⏳ | 4 pts |
| March 31, 2025 | no grade issued ⏳ | 69 pts |
| March 18, 2025 | no grade issued ⏳ | 118 pts |
Empire Soul Food Restaurant vs Central Harlem North-Polo Grounds
Central Harlem North-Polo Grounds runs 71% clean across 91 tracked restaurants — 60 clean, 5 mid, 19 cooked.
Against the 91 spots Cooked tracks in Central Harlem North-Polo Grounds, this one comes out cleaner than 49% of them.
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See every restaurant inspection in Central Harlem North-Polo Grounds →
How New York grades restaurants
New York City health inspectors score violations in points, and lower is better: 0–13 points earns an A, 14–27 a B, and 28 or more a C. Every restaurant is inspected at least once a year, and the letter has to be posted in the window. A restaurant that scores 14 or more on the first inspection of a cycle does not get a letter right away — it stays “Grade Pending” until a re-inspection settles it, which is why some spots here show an hourglass instead of a letter. Cooked only ever shows a letter the city actually posted; we never infer one from a score.
Source: NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) via NYC Open Data. Cooked refreshes this data daily — this listing's most recent inspection is dated October 14, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.