The city has gone to the dogs.
Complaints of pooches sniffing around Big Apple eateries – roaming aisles, licking produce and even tussling with patrons – have surged to the highest levels on record, according to a Post review of city data.
New Yorkers’ 311 calls about four-legged customers entering bakeries, grocery stores and restaurants have doubled in two years, jumping to a whopping 1,525 in 2025, from just 683 complaints in 2023.
“It’s really a huge burden, because so many people are bringing their dogs in,” lamented Tara, a barista at Joe Coffee in Brooklyn Heights, which has been dinged with 18 gripes alone so far this year.
“It’s become a bit of an issue … with regards to the department of health.”
Bringing dogs into food establishments goes against the city health code unless it’s a registered service animal.
But entitled owners are flouting the honor-system allowing service dogs in, putting restaurants and grocery stores in a bone-afide difficult position, experts said.
“The current system is being abused,” food safety policy expert and Northeastern University professor Dr. Darin Detwiler told The Post.
Detwiler noted “several forces” at play — including more people treating pets as family, increased outdoor dining after the COVID pandemic and a hesitancy for businesses to confront scofflaw customers over potential “reputational” risks.
“Pets, no matter how loved, are not service animals,” he added. “There needs to be a better system that protects both food safety and disability rights.”
More than 700 311 calls for pets in food establishments have been logged between Jan. 1 and June 1 this year – with 125 complaints stemming from the Upper East Side’s Black Star Bakery & Cafe, data show.
Since 2020, the buzzy bakery has received a whopping 583 complaints about unpermitted dogs.
“Yes, there is an increase in dogs, specifically in the cafe,” Black Star worker Cendy B. told The Post Wednesday.
“Sometimes we have complaints on why the dogs are in, because people have allergies … but on our end, we can’t really do a lot about it.”
The worker claimed the store is not “allowed” to ask for service animal certification — but the city’s website notes that management can inquire if a pooch is a service dog and what task the pet performs, but cannot ask for proof of disability or a certification.
Some customers flouting the store’s “no pets” policy – illustrated by a sign posted outside the York Avenue bake shop – argued the eatery must curb its rules to dog owner’s whims, or face losing big business.
“The success of the store in this neighborhood specifically does depend a lot on how pet friendly it is,” said customer Katie Bramick, who was dining at Black Star with her dog Argo Wednesday.
“Not having some sort of an accommodation for a pet … might make or break a restaurant.”
Alef, a longtime worker at Ferrane Bakery in Brooklyn Heights — which notched 23 311 calls so far this year — said the shop prioritizes dog owners over other customers’ whines.
“Personally I love dogs so I don’t mind, but some of the customers complain,” the staffer said, “but a lot of customers also have dogs … so we allow them inside, that’s not a problem.”
But some New Yorkers said allowing dogs inside eateries is simply barking mad.
“I don’t think dogs belong in the cafe,” said Upper East Side resident Marina, a self-described “huge dog lover.”
“I don’t think it’s very considerate,” she said. “A friend of ours is blind and the dog is his eyes, and those dogs are trained … they know not to go to the next table begging.”
Detwiler suggested a future certification program — with stronger penalties for fraud claims — could be created to weed out bad actors.
“Misrepresenting pets as service animals harms restaurants, customers, food safety, and people with real disabilities who depend on trained animals,” he said.
“Right now, the rules are violated so commonly that many food establishments feel they have lost the ability to enforce them,” Detwiler continued.
“They should not be forced to accept every pet because society has become uncomfortable saying ‘no.’”
A rep for the health department did not return a request for comment.
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