King County's online restaurant food safety rating map is back after going dark for nearly seven months.

The gap has left diners across the county, including those in Queen Anne, Ballard, and Magnolia, unable to check inspection records or closures for local restaurants.

Seattle & King County Public Health announced the restoration in a statement on Wednesday, June 10. The emoji-based rating map had not been updated since Wednesday, November 26, 2025, when the agency's environmental health services division began transitioning to a new permitting system, according to a Seattle Times report.

The agency said in its announcement that it needed to build and test an entirely new mapping platform, which took roughly 196 days.

During the blackout, Public Health continued conducting inspections and closing restaurants for safety violations, but none of that information was visible to the public online. At least two foodborne illness outbreaks documented in county public health records occurred in that window: a 43-case gastrointestinal illness outbreak linked to Kanishka Cuisine of India over Thanksgiving weekend 2025, which led to a temporary closure on December 4, 2025, and a three-case Campylobacter outbreak at How to Cook a Wolf on Queen Anne Avenue North tied to a January 31, 2026, meal. Neither restaurant's updated rating was accessible on the map at the time.

The rating system, launched in 2017, assigns restaurants one of four grades: Excellent, Good, Okay, or Needs to Improve. In January 2025, Public Health expanded the system to cover food trucks, bakeries, and catering companies. Over 750 mobile food vendors in King County were added.

The restored map is live at kingcounty.gov/en/dept/dph/health-safety/food-safety/search-restaurant-safety-ratings. Residents can search by business name or address, filter by rating, and view full inspection histories. Public Health said it is exploring further improvements to make the tool easier to use but provided no timeline.

Restaurants are still required to post their physical rating sign within five feet of the main entrance. The online map serves as a backup for diners checking before they arrive.