Shun Lee, Famed UWS Chinese Restaurant, Shut Down By City

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — Upper West Side Chinese restaurant Shun Lee, a popular dining destination before Lincoln Center events, was closed by the city Health Department, neighborhood blog the West Side Rag first reported.

A yellow notice was placed in a window of the West 65th Street eatery Tuesday explaining that the restaurant was closed due to health violations, the West Side Rag reported. Shun Lee attributed the closure to "unforeseen circumstances" in its own sign.

An employee at Shun Lee could not address Patch's questions about the restaurant closure Wednesday, but said a manager would be able to speak the next day.

Shun Lee's most-recent health inspection took place Sept. 18, according to city Health Department records. The high-end Chinese restaurant racked up 36 violation points for numerous infractions including improperly stored food, mice, roaches and flies, according to the inspection.

Before the Sept. 18 inspection, Shun Lee earned an "A" grade for a February inspection.

The Health Department generally opts to close restaurants after an inspection if it deems a violation a "public health hazard" that can not be corrected before an inspection ends or for "serious and persistent violations," according to its grading methodology.

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