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SEARCH
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Search Help
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Too Much Information |
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| The most common mistake people make when
using this or any other search engine is adding too much information in
the search fields. Computers are very specific in the way they search for
information - they look for exact matches.
Example: "The Good Food Cafe" 123 Maple Drive Los Angeles, CA 90012If you were looking for information on the restaurant above and listed the complete name and address, you may or may not find it for several reason. Every piece of the address and name adds a limit and tells the search engine to look specifically for that information and only that information. The problem is, that may not be how the information is listed in the database (electronic records) that the Health Department maintains. Let's look at it piece by piece.
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Name |
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| If you typed in the name, "The
Good Food Cafe" and the listing on file said "Good Food
Cafe" without the word "The", you would not find
the record. If you typed in "Good Food" your chances are
much better. Does the name have an apostrophe? If you are looking for "McDonald's,"
try "McDonalds" without an apostrophe.
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Address |
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| There can be many variables that can
cause a non-match when addresses are involved. In the example listed
above, if you listed "123 Maple Drive" and the system had
the address listed as "123 Maple Dr." you would not find
the restaurant. In this example, "Drive" was used instead
of "Dr." If the restaurant is on a corner, do you have
the correct street?
What about the city? If you typed in "Los Angeles" and the city was actually "Hollywood", again you would not get a result. The same goes for the zip code. Restaurants in malls, shopping centers, and other large buildings usually have an address on one of the surrounding streets that borders the property. If you're not sure of the street number or zip code, do not list it. Remember, the computer is looking for exact matches.
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Too Many Fields |
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| It is recommended that you complete the
search fields with very basic and limited information. If you get too many
results, then add a little more at a time until you get what you are
looking for. In the example above, try using "Good Food"
and also add "Maple" in the address box. This technique works for many of
the larger chain restaurants. If you were looking for a specific "McDonalds,"
typing in the name and the street will usually give you the results you
want.
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Scores |
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| You do not have to enter a score in the
score area of the search page. This too can be a limiting factor in your
search. If you are looking for a specific restaurant and you checked "Score
of 90 to 100" you would not get a result if the restaurant scored
anything less than an "A."
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Display Search Results |
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| Using this pull down menu does not add
any limiting factors to your search. It just allows you to sort the
results by Establishment (Alphabetically), Inspection Date, Score, Zip
Code, or City. If you check the box that says "Include all
surrounding Zips" any zip code that borders the zip code entered will
be included in the results.
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Tip |
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| Try experimenting with the search engine
and its capabilities. For example, you can find all the "A"
restaurants on a particular street and sort the results by the last
inspection date. Type in a street name without an address and you will
find all the restaurants on that street. You can do the same for any of
the fields.
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| Click here to go back to the Food Facility Rating Search page. | |
| Los
Angeles County Department of Health Services - Public Health Environmental Health 5050 Commerce Dr Baldwin Park, CA 91706 (626) 430-5100 |
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