The Manhattan Criminal Court cafeteria has been shut down after back-to-back city health inspections found mice, cockroaches, and multiple sanitary violations plaguing the tiny basement eatery.
The open-to-the-public cafe at 100 Centre St., which seats roughly six customers, failed inspections on July 1 and July 23, with both visits turning up “evidence of mice or live mice,” according to Department of Health records. The July 1 inspection also cited workers for eating, drinking, and using tobacco or e-cigarettes on the job, plus failures to keep food at proper temperatures. Despite the violations, the cafeteria somehow retained a “B” grade rating.
One source with direct knowledge of the operation painted a grim picture that extended well beyond the kitchen. “It’s like a landfill down there. There’s a lot of mice. They crawl on the inmates when they’re laying in the cell,” the source said. Another source flatly stated that the cafeteria needs to be shut down entirely.
A recently retired cafeteria worker said they had personally flagged the rodent problem before leaving their post. “I told them there were mice running by the stove. I saw two of them,” the former employee said. The same worker added, “They need to put something better there.”
The rodent issue was not entirely new. City health inspectors had already found mice in the kitchen during an April 2025 inspection, though records show that violation was cleared before the next review the following August. The latest failures, however, proved too much to overcome, and photos from Thursday showed the cafeteria closed with signs on the door requiring face coverings for anyone entering.
The Department of Citywide Administrative Services has pushed back against any direct link between the health failures and the closure. The agency said the cafeteria is shut for work “related to the building’s plumbing and drainage systems” and that the timing of any reopening depends on when that facilities work is finished. The statement did not address why the plumbing repairs coincided with the second failed inspection or whether health clearance would be required before service resumes.
The basement facility serves both court staff and members of the public who pass through one of the city’s busiest criminal courthouses, plus inmates held in the building’s cells. The combination of rodent activity near food preparation areas and reports of mice entering holding areas has amplified concerns about whether the space was ever suitable for food service.
The July 23 inspection marked the second strike in under four weeks for an operation that had already been cited for the same core problem. While the earlier April finding had been resolved, the return of mice by July suggests whatever measures were implemented failed to hold.
The cafeteria’s closure leaves regulars at the courthouse without their usual food option, though the timing of any return remains tied to the ongoing facilities work.