Is that restaurant clean? Is the food safe?

Chicago restaurant inspections

Before heading out for food, check out how your favorite restaurant or food store fared when inspected by the Food Protection Division of the Chicago Department of Public Health.

This database allows you to search by restaurant, street name or zip code for all Chicago restaurant inspections. You can also search by inspection result using the "results" pulldown menu. (If you want to find an establishment by street, do not include words like "street," "avenue" or "road" in your query.) Note that the city may not enter inspection reports immediately so some records may reflect older results.

To report a food-related concern:

Call 311 or (312)744-8500 from outside the city.

About food inspections:

Read the Chicago Tribune's coverage of the food inspection process.

According to the Chicago Department of Public Health, the Food Protection Division "is committed to maintaining the safety of food bought, sold, or prepared for public consumption in Chicago by carrying out science-based inspections of all retail and wholesale food establishments."

The Food Division inspects restaurants, grocery stores, bakeries, convenience stores, hospitals, nursing homes, day care facilities, shelters, schools, and temporary food service events.

These inspections, which focus on food handling practices, product temperatures, personal hygiene, facility maintenance, and pest control, are designed to promote public health and prevent food-borne illness.

The inspection data is compiled in the City of Chicago's Food Inspection Reporting System.

What do the results mean?

The status of an inspection can be pass, pass with conditions, or fail:

Pass means the business meets the minimum requirements of the municipal code and does not have serious or critical violations.

Pass with conditions means the business has serious or critical violations that are corrected during the inspection or the certified food service sanitation manager is not present at the time of inspection.

Fail means the business has serious violations that cannot be corrected during the inspection. The business must correct the serious violations and pass a re-inspection in order to remain open. Fail is also given if the business has critical violations that cannot be corrected during the inspection. In this situation, the business will have its license suspended until it passes a re-inspection.

Critical violations can create an immediate health hazard. They includes inadequate storage temperatures, inappropriate food handling practices, improper personal hygiene, rodent and/or insect infestation, or lack of hot running water.

Serious violations include potentially hazardous food improperly thawed, re-serving food previously served to another customer and food not properly protected from contamination. These types of violations create a potential health hazard.

Learn more about the types of code violations.

According to the city, "Violations noted during the inspection are merely allegations and may be disputed and dismissed at a City administrative hearing. The published information may reflect inspections that have not yet been adjudicated."

Is anyone else looking at food safety?

Another city department know as Mayor Daley's Dumpster Task Force can also close food establishments. The task force focuses on violations such as overflowing dumpsters. Read more and find out what businesses have been closed.

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Art by Rick Tuma.