Norbert's Pizza In Bushwick Closes After Inspection Find Rats

BUSHWICK, BROOKLYN — Norbert’s Pizza was closed by health inspectors who found evidence of rats and mice in the pizzeria Wednesday, city records show.

Bushwick’s go-to for vegan pizza on Stuyvesant Avenue near Broadway was forced to shut down after the Department of Health reported four major health code violations on Nov. 15.

Inspectors reported evidence of rats and mice near the food areas, filth flies — flies associated with garbage or sewage, such as fruit and bottle flies — and foods being kept at unsafe temperatures, city records show.

The pizzeria lies on the border of Bed-Stuy and Bushwick, both of which were included in the city's list of neighborhoods with the worst rat infestations.

Restaurants are graded on a violation point system that determines their letter grades — scores between zero and 13 constitute an A, scores between 14 and 27 constitute a B, and scores above 28 earn eateries a C and close monitoring from the city's health department.

During its Wednesday inspection, the Bushwick eatery earned 41 points — 30 points more than Norbert’s earned during an inspection in March.

Norbert's Pizza has been a favorite in the neighborhood since owners opened the original location at 1215 Myrtle Ave. in 2012.

A Norbert’s Pizza representative was not immediately available to comment.

Photo courtesy of GoogleMaps/Sept. 2014