Any system designed to deliver safer food is going run up against some form of hucksterism – food and fraud have always gone together. That doesn’t mean a system is hopelessly flawed, it means make it better to weed out the cheats.

The New York Daily News reports that just weeks after city officials started forcing eateries to post sanitary letter grades in their windows, the News spotted a suspicious-looking letter A at a restaurant that didn’t look grade-A.

Ming’s Chinese take-out on 9th Ave. at 33rd St. had a "Sanitary Inspection Grade" on the wall beside its counter that looked like the ones that have started to crop up in restaurant windows. It had the city seal, the Health Department logo and a helpful reminder to call 311.

But a check of city records found that – sure enough – Ming’s hadn’t earned the prized mark.

To the contrary, though the take-out’s last inspection in January came before the city started issuing letter grades, inspectors found serious health code violations. Among them: Evidence of mice, roaches and flying insects.

Inspectors also discovered that some hot food was stored at too low a temperature to be safe and that some equipment was poorly maintained.

A manager at Ming’s refused to say where he got his fake grade, saying that a company came in and then sent the letter to him. He refused to name that company – or to explain why he posted a grade he hadn’t earned. He also refused to give his name.

City officials say they haven’t received any complaints of restaurants posting fake grades, adding they’ll crack down on anyone caught cheating. Those restaurants could face a fine of $1,000.