The Smith, the popular East Village American brasserie at 55 Third Avenue, is currently displaying a "Grade Pending" sign after back-to-back health inspections in early 2026 turned up evidence of mice — twice. The restaurant, which has operated at the corner of Third Avenue and 10th Street since 2007, racked up 43 points on a March 3 inspection and 27 points on a follow-up March 18 visit, according to records from the NYC Department of Health.
Under New York City's restaurant grading system, a score of 0–13 earns an A, 14–27 earns a B, and 28 or above results in a C. When a restaurant scores below an A on its initial inspection, it receives a chance at a re-inspection before a grade is posted — which is why the "Grade Pending" card is currently in the window rather than a letter. The March 3 score of 43 points would place the restaurant squarely in C territory. The March 18 re-inspection brought that down to 27 points, a B, but violations — including the mice evidence — were still issued.
What the Inspectors Found
The March 3 inspection cited five violations, the most serious being evidence of mice or live mice in food or non-food areas, and conditions conducive to rodents and other pests. Inspectors also flagged food, supplies, or equipment not protected from potential contamination, along with issues with food contact surfaces and non-food contact surfaces. Two weeks later, on March 18, the re-inspection found the same pest-related violations still present, alongside hot and cold temperature control failures — meaning foods were not being held at required safe temperatures — and a drainage or backflow issue.
Temperature control violations are classified as critical by the Health Department, as they directly relate to the risk of foodborne illness. The combination of repeated pest evidence and temperature violations across two consecutive inspections is what drives the elevated point totals, and what keeps the grade pending while the restaurant's status is assessed.
A Pattern Worth Noting
The 2026 inspections aren't an isolated incident. Looking back at the Health Department's full inspection history for the location, The Smith East Village was cited for harborage conditions conducive to pests — without the direct mice evidence — in both its November 2024 inspection (21 points) and its March 2024 inspection (27 points). Those scores resulted in B grades. The pest-related findings escalated to active mice evidence in early 2026, which is what pushed the score into C territory on the initial inspection.
The Smith opened its East Village flagship in 2007 under CEO and founder Jeffrey Lefcourt and has since expanded to six locations across New York, Washington D.C., and Chicago. The East Village location is the original, and it remains one of the busiest, with nearly 2,300 reviews on Yelp and a consistent brunch and dinner crowd. The Infatuation has described the restaurant's appeal as "an East Village restaurant that turned into a chain" — dependable, busy, and the kind of place that fills up regardless of reviews. Whether its regulars will notice or care about the Grade Pending card in the window is another matter. But the repeated mouse findings at one of the neighborhood's most-trafficked dining rooms is the kind of thing that's worth knowing before you order the mac and cheese.
