How restaurant inspections work in Maryland
Who inspects Maryland's restaurants, how results are graded, and how to read them on CleanPlate.
CleanPlate's Maryland coverage is Montgomery County — the state's most populous county, wrapping the northwest side of Washington, D.C.
Who does the inspecting
Montgomery County's Department of Health and Human Services licenses and inspects the county's food service facilities.
How results are graded
Inspections are checklist-based against the CDC's foodborne-illness risk factors — approved sources, temperature control, handwashing, pest control and more — and conclude with a Pass, Fail, or Closed status rather than a score. CleanPlate shows the status directly and lists which checklist categories were out of compliance at the latest inspection.
Reading it on CleanPlate
Every Maryland restaurant page on CleanPlate shows the establishment's current standing, its full inspection history with dates, and a link to the official agency behind the record. Grades are shown exactly as reported; where the source publishes no summary grade, the derived status is labeled as derived. Establishments with no inspection in over two years are treated as likely closed and excluded from search.