Start with Cambridge’s official Sanitary Inspections dataset:
- Search the business name or address and confirm the matched operation.
- Copy its Case Number, then clear the search.
- Search the exact Case Number to collect every published row for that case.
Global Search also matches inspector comments. A partial-name query can therefore hide other rows from the same case.
Confirm the operation before reading its cases
The Cambridge Inspectional Services Department (ISD) Food and Sanitary program covers restaurants and other operation types, including schools, bakeries, daycares, mobile food trucks, package stores, and retail stores. Confirm the business name, physical address, and facility type rather than assuming every food-related row belongs to a standalone restaurant.
Cambridge also gives licensed caterers based outside the city a registration route when they serve food in Cambridge. Temporary events and farmers markets use separate permit routes. For a caterer or event vendor, confirm the activity and permit route before assuming a fixed restaurant search contains the full record.
Use the separate Food Establishment Permits dataset to compare the business name, DBA, address, permit type, permit ID, MBL, and Viewpoint ID. Its Status field means application status. It is not an inspection outcome or proof that the operation is open, closed, or currently compliant.
Distinguish the identifiers. A permit ID identifies a permit record; a Case Number identifies a published inspection case. Although Viewpoint ID appears in both schemas, the city metadata does not promise an automatic cross-dataset match. Compare the DBA or name, address, permit type, and relevant dates. Issue Date and application Status belong to the permit process, not the inspection date or outcome.
If a DBA changed while the address stayed the same, do not attach an earlier case to a newer permit from the address alone. Preserve each identifier and name exactly, then ask ISD to confirm the relationship if it matters to the history.
Group every published case before interpreting it
Rows sharing one Case Number belong to one published case. Different rows can carry different correction dates, and inspector comments can record later follow-up without a new Case Number. The rows do not establish the number of physical visits; obtain the original report when that distinction matters.
City metadata says a blank Code Number means no citations. Keep blank rows. Preserve each Code Number and Description; some descriptions include P, Pf, C, a star, or no suffix.
The schema has no score or grade field, so row count is not a grade. Date Corrected, Case Closed Date, and Code Case Status are not closure or reopening decisions. Our guide to reading violations and correction evidence explains why a finding, an onsite correction, and later verification answer different questions.
How far back the published rows go
On October 20, 2026 the Sanitary Inspections dataset held 12,041 rows across 3,654 case numbers. Case open dates ran from May 12, 2021 to October 2, 2026, and 533 cases had no open date at all. A typical published case therefore spans about three rows, and 1,282 rows carried a blank Code Number, which the city defines as no citation.
Two practical consequences follow. The dataset doesn’t reach back before mid-2021, even though the city describes routine inspections at least once every six months, so an older history has to come from the records room. A case without an open date can’t be placed on a timeline from the dataset alone; ask ISD for the original report date. These are our counts of the public dataset, not city statistics.
Find the original report or action record
For an older case or missing document, Cambridge says restaurant inspection records are stored in the ISD records room. Give the exact business name, physical address, permit or Viewpoint ID, Case Number, and date range. Request the original inspection report and any relevant correction verification or reinspection.
The records room is on the lower level at 831 Massachusetts Avenue. Its posted availability varies by weekday, so confirm the current hours before visiting. Bring the identifiers and dates together so staff can narrow the record you mean.
If closure or resumed operation matters, separately request the closure or suspension order and the dated decision authorizing resumed operation. A later inspection is not automatically that decision. Our closure and permit-suspension guide shows how to keep the inspection, order, correction, and reopening evidence separate.
A dated inspection is not a guarantee of current food safety, and a missing search result does not establish a complete history.
Sources were checked September 27, 2026; the dataset was counted October 20, 2026.