Open Delaware's current Restaurant Inspection Reports service, locate the establishment's report, and match the establishment name and address shown on it. The state says reports from the past two years are available; an older record may require a records request rather than another variation of the same public search.
Use the Delaware Health and Social Services Restaurant Inspection Reports page for the current public entry point. The Division of Public Health's Inspection Services page says its searchable database is updated weekly. Read the dated report itself; Delaware's system is built around inspection type and violation categories, not a consumer letter grade.
Use the current Delaware report route
- Open the current state Restaurant Inspection Reports service rather than the older
/dhss/dph/hsp/foodinsp.htmladdress. - Follow the state's report or searchable-database route and locate the establishment.
- Match the establishment name and full address on the report before reading the findings. A familiar trade name is not enough when a chain has several locations.
- Open the newest report and note its date and inspection type, then check whether another report documents a reinspection, complaint, or closure.
- If the needed inspection is older than the two-year public window, use the FOIA request link on Inspection Services instead of assuming the record does not exist.
Read Delaware violation categories literally
Delaware's Food Establishment Inspection FAQ distinguishes core, priority foundation, and priority violations. A core violation is a failure to meet a Food Code requirement that does not itself create a condition contributing to illness. Priority or priority foundation violations involve failures that can contribute to illness. Do not translate those terms into an A, B, or C grade.
| Report item | What to capture | How to interpret it |
|---|---|---|
| Establishment identity | Name and full address shown on the report | Use both to avoid mixing branches or a former operator with the intended restaurant. |
| Inspection date and type | The exact date and the state's displayed inspection type | A routine inspection, complaint visit, reinspection, and closure are different events. |
| Violation category | Core, priority foundation, or priority as written | Keep the state's category; do not substitute a grade or an invented severity label. |
| Correction notation | Whether the report says the item was corrected during the inspection or remained for follow-up | Correction of one item does not resolve every finding on the report. |
| Later report | Reinspection date, findings, and any newly observed violations | Use the later report to update the history, not to erase the earlier observation. |
Follow priority findings into the reinspection
Many priority and priority foundation violations can be corrected during the inspection, and Delaware says those corrections are recorded on the report. When correction takes longer, the state FAQ says the inspector returns within 10 days to check the earlier deficiencies and record any new violations observed. Read that later visit before describing the earlier problem as still open or fully resolved.
- If the item is marked corrected during the visit, report that notation with the original finding.
- If the report calls for follow-up, look for the reinspection rather than guessing from elapsed time.
- If the reinspection lists new violations, keep them separate from the earlier deficiencies.
- If no later report is available within the public window, ask the appropriate Environmental Health Field Services office about the specific establishment and inspection date.
Do not infer closure from a violation count
Delaware's FAQ says a restaurant is closed immediately when an imminent health hazard is found, including conditions such as flooding, sewage backup, loss of electricity, or loss of running water. The report will show closure under the inspection-type category, and the hazard must be corrected before reopening.
There is no fixed number of priority or priority foundation violations that automatically means closure. The state focuses on whether food and preparation surfaces can be protected from contamination. Therefore, do not convert a violation count into “closed” or “safe”; use the inspection type and the later official record.
What a missing Delaware report can mean
| Situation | Next official step |
|---|---|
| The inspection is more than two years old | Use the FOIA request route linked from Inspection Services. |
| The restaurant changed name or operator | Match the street address and ask the county field office which establishment record owns the date in question. |
| A recent inspection is not yet visible | Allow for the database's stated weekly update cycle, then recheck. |
| The report or follow-up remains unclear | Contact the Environmental Health Field Services office for the appropriate county with the establishment name, address, and inspection date. |
| You want to report a current problem | Use the Food (Restaurant/Retail) Consumer Complaint Hotline, 302-744-4736; a records request is not a complaint report. |
In beach towns, a city visit and a state food inspection are easy to confuse. Our Rehoboth Beach guide to city versus state inspection records shows how to tell them apart on the DPH list.
For general restaurant and retail-food questions, the current DPH contact page lists 302-744-4546. For a records question, name the exact establishment, address, county, approximate inspection date, and whether you are seeking a routine inspection, complaint visit, reinspection, or closure record.