Higher Ground
73/100 — Needs Improvement
Scores higher than 160 of 6,939 Austin-area facilities with a published score — about 2% of them. Citywide median current score: 93/100.
What a score of 73 means
Needs improvement. Inspections start at 100 and lose points for each violation the inspector writes up, so 73 means 27 points of violations were recorded on that visit. Below 80 is the lowest of the three bands this site groups Austin scores into — a minority of Austin inspections end here, and a result this low is the kind that tends to be followed by a re-inspection.
Scores higher than 160 of 6,939 Austin-area facilities with a published score — about 2% of them. Citywide median current score: 93/100. In ZIP 78701, it scores higher than 5 of 531 facilities with a published score (ZIP median: 91/100).
A score is a snapshot of a single visit on a single day. It measures compliance with food-safety rules — not food quality, service or how clean the place is today. Austin Public Health does not publish the individual violations behind a score, so this dataset cannot say what was found.
About Higher Ground Health Inspections
Higher Ground is a food establishment inspected by Austin Public Health, at 720 Congress Ave, Austin, Texas (78701). Scores higher than 160 of 6,939 Austin-area facilities with a published score — about 2% of them. Citywide median current score: 93/100. In ZIP 78701, it scores higher than 5 of 531 facilities with a published score (ZIP median: 91/100).
⏱️Inspection Cadence
- Visited roughly every 185 days (median), across 3 recorded visit dates.
- 770 days since the most recent visit (July 31, 2024).
- Tracked for 12 months.
- Most recent scored visit declined by 7 points — 80/100 on November 16, 2023 to 73/100 on July 31, 2024.
📍Location Details
Address: 720 Congress Ave
City: Austin, TX
ZIP Code: 78701
Inspections conducted by Austin Public Health
Health inspections are conducted by Austin Public Health to ensure restaurants maintain proper food safety standards. Scores are based on compliance with Texas Food Establishment Rules (TFER) and assess factors including food temperature control, employee hygiene, facility cleanliness, and pest control. Regular inspections help protect public health by identifying and correcting violations before they can cause foodborne illness. Austin Public Health does not publish individual violation records alongside the score, so specific findings from a given visit are not part of this dataset.
🍴Nearby Restaurants
Within 0.5 miles · at least 44 found
📈Score Trend
| Date | Score |
|---|---|
| Jul 27, 2023 | 75 |
| Nov 16, 2023 | 80 |
| Jul 31, 2024 | 73 |
Complete inspection history
Every inspection Austin Public Health has published for this facility, newest first, covering 12 months. Scores are published as a number out of 100; the individual violations behind each one are not published.
| Date | Score | Rating | Visit type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 73/100 | Needs Improvement | Routine Inspection | |
| 80/100 | Satisfactory | Routine Inspection | |
| 75/100 | Needs Improvement | Routine Inspection |
Within half a mile and scoring higher
6 nearby facilities carry a most-recent score above Higher Ground’s 73. 38 of the at least 44 inspected neighbours scored the same or lower.
- Stephen F. Austin Royal Sonesta, The0.01 mi away · inspected Feb 3, 202698/100
- State Theatre0.01 mi away · inspected Aug 12, 202596/100
- State Theatre0.01 mi away · inspected Aug 12, 202596/100
- Paramount Theatre0.01 mi away · inspected Aug 12, 202596/100
- Paramount Theatre0.01 mi away · inspected Aug 12, 202596/100
- Hyatt Centric Congress Avenue Austin0.01 mi away · inspected Feb 3, 202695/100
Distances are straight-line from the geocoded address, and every score shown is that facility’s most recent published one, which may be from a different date than the score above. A higher number is not a recommendation — it is one inspector’s reading of one visit.
Common questions about Higher Ground
- What was Higher Ground's last health inspection score?
- Higher Ground scored 73 out of 100 at its most recent scored inspection by Austin Public Health, on July 31, 2024. Inspections start at 100 and lose points for each violation the inspector writes up, so 73 means 27 points of violations were recorded on that visit. Below 80 is the lowest of the three bands this site groups Austin scores into — a minority of Austin inspections end here, and a result this low is the kind that tends to be followed by a re-inspection. Scores higher than 160 of 6,939 Austin-area facilities with a published score — about 2% of them. Citywide median current score: 93/100. Its average across 3 scored inspections is 76/100.
- Is Higher Ground clean?
- Nobody can answer that from this dataset, and this page will not pretend to. A score is a snapshot of a single visit on a single day. It measures compliance with food-safety rules — not food quality, service or how clean the place is today. Austin Public Health does not publish the individual violations behind a score, so this dataset cannot say what was found. What the record does show: at the last scored visit, on July 31, 2024, the inspector deducted 27 points for a score of 73/100, and scores higher than 160 of 6,939 Austin-area facilities with a published score — about 2% of them. Citywide median current score: 93/100.
- How many health inspections has Higher Ground had?
- Higher Ground has 3 health inspections on record from Austin Public Health over 12 months. 0 scored 90 or above, 1 scored 80 to 89, and 2 scored below 80. The median gap between recorded visits is 185 days.
- Where is Higher Ground located?
- Higher Ground is at 720 Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78701. Located near at least 44 other inspected restaurants within 0.5 miles.
- What other inspected restaurants are near Higher Ground?
- There are at least 44 other inspected food establishments within half a mile, including Jupiter Supper Club (94/100), Jupiter Supper Club (94/100), Hyatt Centric Congress Avenue Austin (84/100). Each has its own inspection history on this site.
- Does Austin publish the violations behind Higher Ground's score?
- No. The City of Austin open dataset behind this page (ecmv-9xxi) carries the establishment name, address, ZIP, inspection date, score, facility ID, and whether the visit was routine or a follow-up — and nothing else. There is no violation-level field, so no site republishing this dataset can tell you what an inspector actually found. Austin Public Health holds the full inspection reports.
All figures on this page come from Austin Public Health via the City of Austin open data portal, dataset ecmv-9xxi, newest inspection for this facility July 31, 2024. Nothing here is a rating written by this site.
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