Manhattan, NY — Yakiniku Gen, a Japanese restaurant at 218 East 9th Street in the East Village, received a Grade B score of 22 points following a health inspection conducted on December 29, 2025. Inspectors documented 7 critical and 10 non-critical violations across the 17-item report. The score places the restaurant near the upper end of the Grade B range, just 6 points below the 28-point threshold that would trigger a Grade C.

What Inspectors Found

The most frequently cited critical violation involved food, supplies, or equipment not being protected from potential sources of contamination during storage, preparation, transportation, display, or service. This violation, coded as 06C under NYC inspection protocols, was documented four separate times during the inspection. The repeated citations suggest a pattern of contamination protection issues across multiple areas of the establishment.

Inspectors also cited the restaurant twice for not having properly scaled and calibrated thermometers or thermocouples readily accessible in food preparation and hot/cold holding areas. Without functioning temperature monitoring equipment, staff cannot verify that time and temperature controlled for safety (TCS) foods are maintained at safe temperatures during cooking, cooling, reheating, and holding — a fundamental food safety requirement.

An additional critical violation noted that sanitized equipment or utensils, including in-use food dispensing utensils, were improperly used or stored.

Among the 10 non-critical violations, inspectors recorded four instances of nuisance conditions at the facility, three citations for failure to post healthy eating information, and three citations for missing required signage including choking first aid posters, alcohol and pregnancy warning signs, and resuscitation equipment notices.

Food Safety Context

NYC Health Code Article 81 establishes the regulatory framework for food service establishments in New York City. The contamination protection requirements cited under Code 06C align with FDA Food Code standards that mandate food be protected from cross-contamination during all stages of handling. Temperature monitoring, addressed under Code 04J, is considered essential because the temperature danger zone between 41°F and 140°F allows rapid bacterial growth that can lead to foodborne illness.

The repeated nature of the 06C citations — four instances in a single inspection — indicates contamination protection deficiencies were found in multiple areas of the restaurant's operations rather than representing an isolated issue.

Inspection History

No prior inspection history is available in the DOHMH database for this establishment. This December 2025 inspection represents the first recorded inspection on file.

Note: This inspection was conducted on December 29, 2025. The data was released by DOHMH on January 16, 2026. Current conditions at the restaurant may differ from what was documented during the inspection.

Understanding NYC Restaurant Grades

New York City's restaurant grading system assigns letter grades based on total violation points:

  • A: 0–13 points (lowest number of violations)
  • B: 14–27 points (moderate violations)
  • C: 28 or more points (most significant violations)

Yakiniku Gen's score of 22 falls in the upper portion of the Grade B range. Restaurants that receive a B or C grade may request a re-inspection to attempt to improve their score.

Consumers can look up the full inspection details for any NYC restaurant through the DOHMH restaurant inspection database, available online through NYC Open Data. The complete violation report for this inspection is part of the public record.

More About This Restaurant

View the full inspection history for Yakiniku Gen including all past inspections, violations, and grade changes.