Georgia Food Code Guide: Restaurant Inspections, Letter Grades & Compliance

How Georgia Food Inspections Work

Food safety inspections in Georgia are conducted by Environmental Health Specialists employed by county health departments and overseen by the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH). The governing rule is Chapter 511-6-1 of the Georgia Rules and Regulations for Food Service, which is based on the FDA Food Code 2013.

Most Georgia restaurants receive at least two inspections per year -- one routine inspection and at least one follow-up -- with higher-risk facilities, complaint-based inspections, and facilities with a history of violations receiving additional visits. All routine inspections are unannounced.

Georgia is one of the few states where both the letter grade and the numeric score must be posted near the entrance in a location visible to customers. The grade card is approximately 8.5" x 11" and must remain posted until the next inspection. Removing or obscuring the grade card is a violation.

The label "Food Safety Excellence" is used by Georgia DPH to recognize establishments that consistently score in the A range. This distinction can appear on inspection reports and is used by some counties in consumer-facing materials.

Quick Reference

Regulatory authority: Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH)

Local enforcement: County Environmental Health departments

Governing rule: Chapter 511-6-1, Georgia Rules and Regulations for Food Service

Adopted food code basis: FDA Food Code 2013

Inspection frequency: At least twice per year; more for high-risk or non-compliant facilities

Inspections announced: No -- routine inspections are unannounced

Grade posting requirement: Letter grade and numeric score must be posted near the entrance

Excellence designation: "Food Safety Excellence" for consistent A-range scores

TCS cold holding: 41°F or below

TCS hot holding: 135°F or above

Georgia's Letter Grading System

Georgia uses a 100-point scoring system with four possible grades. The letter grade and numeric score are both posted at the entrance. A "U" grade -- Unsatisfactory -- signals serious compliance failures and triggers immediate action.

Score: 90 to 100 (Food Safety Excellence)

Substantial compliance with Chapter 511-6-1. The "Food Safety Excellence" designation may accompany A grades from facilities with a consistent compliance history. Posted at the entrance alongside the numeric score.

Score: 80 to 89

Compliance issues present. A B grade triggers a mandatory follow-up inspection. The B card is posted at the entrance. Violations must be corrected before the follow-up, and the follow-up result becomes the record for that inspection cycle.

Score: 70 to 79

Significant compliance failures. A C triggers immediate re-inspection. The C card is posted prominently at the entrance. Repeated C grades substantially increase the frequency of future inspections and increase the risk of permit action.

Score: below 70 (Unsatisfactory)

Immediate enforcement action. A U grade indicates conditions the Georgia DPH considers unsafe for public food service. The facility may be required to close immediately and cannot reopen until a re-inspection confirms corrections. A U posted at the entrance is highly visible to customers.

Most Common Violations in Georgia Restaurant Inspections

These are the categories where Georgia's Environmental Health Specialists most frequently cite violations under Chapter 511-6-1. Each one is preventable with consistent daily practice.

Temperature control failuresCold TCS foods held above 41°F or hot TCS foods below 135°F. This is the highest-frequency critical violation category in Georgia and one of the most heavily weighted items on the inspection form. Walk-in cooler temperatures should be documented at least twice per shift.

Improper coolingGeorgia follows the FDA Food Code two-stage cooling requirement: cooked food must cool from 135°F to 70°F within 2 hours, then from 70°F to 41°F within an additional 4 hours. Large pots of soup, braised meats, and starches are the most common problem items. Covered hot containers placed directly in the walk-in routinely fail this standard.

Food storage order in coolersRaw proteins stored above ready-to-eat foods. Georgia inspectors check refrigerator and walk-in storage organization on every visit. The correct top-to-bottom storage order is: ready-to-eat foods, seafood, whole-cut meats, ground meats, poultry.

Employee hygiene and handwashingFailure to wash hands at required points, bare-hand contact with ready-to-eat foods, or working while ill. Georgia's Chapter 511-6-1 specifically addresses employee health reporting requirements -- operators must have a written employee health policy on file.

Date marking failuresReady-to-eat TCS foods prepared on site and held more than 24 hours must be dated and discarded within 7 days. Georgia inspectors check every container in the cooler for labels. Unlabeled containers are one of the fastest ways to lose points on an inspection.

Warewashing and sanitizer complianceEquipment and utensils washed but not sanitized, or sanitizer concentration out of range. Georgia inspectors test sanitizer with test strips and may check dish machine rinse temperatures with a thermometer. Both are quick checks that reveal recurring process failures.

Built on Georgia law, not a national average

Real, sourced citations

Georgia enforces Chapter 511-6-1 of the Rules and Regulations for Food Service. Our checklist cites the specific section for each item we check, sourced directly from Georgia DPH's published rule text -- not generated from a generic FDA template.

County-level enforcement awareness

Georgia's inspections are conducted at the county level. Our corrective action reports reference the county Environmental Health department structure so operators know the correct authority to contact, not just a generic state agency name.

Twice-a-year inspection cadence

Because Georgia inspects at least twice per year, operators have a predictable window between inspections to find and fix problems. Our self-audit tools are designed to run between inspections, not just before them.

What's included

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Georgia-specific inspection checklistCovers all major Chapter 511-6-1 categories with citations wired into every AI finding, structured to reflect how Georgia county inspectors categorize violations.

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AI photo reviewUpload photos from each zone and AI flags violations with the Georgia-specific citation, so staff know exactly what to correct and how a county inspector would write it up.

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Corrective action trackingEvery violation gets an assigned owner, due date, and verification step. Nothing closes out until a manager confirms the fix is in place.

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Multi-location dashboardSee every location's score and open items in one view, across Georgia sites or across multiple states.

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Temperature and HACCP loggingDigital logs for walk-ins, hot holding, and cooling records. Timestamped documentation that backs up your compliance when an inspector asks to see records.

Georgia Food Code: A Complete Guide for Restaurant Operators