According to a spokeswoman at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, signs of rats in restaurants are not all that common. In 2014, the department conducted more than 80,000 inspections in over 24,000 restaurants, which resulted in 1,111 rat-related citations in the city. Some places had citations for both rats and mice.
“When signs of rats are found, restaurants are often closed by the department until the problem can be addressed,” the spokeswoman said.
But why were the rats found at these restaurants and not others?
According to the health department, rats are more likely to show up at restaurants where surrounding “high density” businesses are throwing their garbage on the curb. If an inspector finds rats inside a restaurant, he checks for signs outside the building, too, and notifies the landlord. If a restaurant is following the department’s rules — closing holes and cracks, using licensed exterminators, and properly storing food and waste — rats shouldn’t be coming in uninvited.
Indeed, geography or neighborhood may be something to consider. In the wild, rats form colonies, or territories. They do the same in the city, and, according to a Time magazine article that mapped New York rats, different colonies are everywhere. In that case, it’s unclear whether neighborhood matters.