Cooked?
Waku Waku
- resultPass
- critical violations0
- last inspectedOctober 2, 2025
- address2 Tyler St, Boston 02111
Is Waku Waku clean?
Waku Waku is currently Pass from Boston Inspectional Services, Health Division, from an inspection on October 2, 2025. No critical violations were recorded at that visit. On Cooked's ladder that reads clean 😇.
What did inspectors find at Waku Waku?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on October 2, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- ⚠️Eating Drinking or Using Tobacco (C) • Cigarette box stored next to clean bowls on production line. Discontinue.Eating Drinking or Using Tobacco (C) • Cigarette box stored next to clean bowls on production line. Discontinue.
- ⚠️Packaged and Unpackaged Food-Separation Packaging and Segregation (C) • Multiple containers of food product uncovered in stand up refrigeration unit. Uncovered spices and seasonings in basement. Cover to prevent potential contaminants.Packaged and Unpackaged Food-Separation Packaging and Segregation (C) • Multiple containers of food product uncovered in stand up refrigeration unit. Uncovered spices and seasonings in basement. Cover to prevent potential contaminants.
- ⚠️Packaged and Unpackaged Food-Separation Packaging and Segregation (P) • Raw chicken breast stored on top of ready to eat bao buns. Corrected on site. Ensure raw foods are stored below ready to eat products to prevent potential contaminants.criticalPackaged and Unpackaged Food-Separation Packaging and Segregation (P) • Raw chicken breast stored on top of ready to eat bao buns. Corrected on site. Ensure raw foods are stored below ready to eat products to prevent potential contaminants.
- ⚠️Ready-To-Eat Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food Date Marking (Pf) • No date marking on multiple foods in walk in cooler. Provide for all foods kept longer than 24 hours.Ready-To-Eat Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food Date Marking (Pf) • No date marking on multiple foods in walk in cooler. Provide for all foods kept longer than 24 hours.
- ⚠️(B) and (C) Equipment Food-Contact Surfaces Nonfood-Contact Surfaces and Utensils (C) • Table next to production line is rusted. Replace shelfing.(B) and (C) Equipment Food-Contact Surfaces Nonfood-Contact Surfaces and Utensils (C) • Table next to production line is rusted. Replace shelfing.
- ⚠️(A) Equipment Food-Contact Surfaces Nonfood-Contact Surfaces and Utensils (Pf) • All shelfing in walk in cooler observed with black mold like build up. Clean to remove all soils in walk in cooler.(A) Equipment Food-Contact Surfaces Nonfood-Contact Surfaces and Utensils (Pf) • All shelfing in walk in cooler observed with black mold like build up. Clean to remove all soils in walk in cooler.
- ⚠️Controlling Pests (Pf) • Rodent droppings under service area hand sink. Clean to remove. Provide an updated pest report.Controlling Pests (Pf) • Rodent droppings under service area hand sink. Clean to remove. Provide an updated pest report.
When was Waku Waku last inspected?
Waku Waku has 22 inspections on record going back to May 27, 2021. The 12 most recent are shown below.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| October 2, 2025 | Pass | |
| September 24, 2025 | Fail | |
| June 9, 2025 | Pass | |
| June 2, 2025 | Fail | |
| August 14, 2024 | Pass | |
| August 7, 2024 | Fail | |
| May 21, 2024 | Pass | |
| May 14, 2024 | Fail | |
| January 23, 2024 | Pass | |
| January 16, 2024 | Fail | |
| September 21, 2023 | Pass | |
| September 14, 2023 | Fail |
Waku Waku vs Leather District
Leather District runs 86% clean across 188 tracked restaurants — 149 clean, 11 mid, 13 cooked.
Against the 188 spots Cooked tracks in Leather District, this one comes out cleaner than 14% of them.
Other spots in Leather District
How Boston grades restaurants
Boston reports inspections as a pass or a fail, with no score and no letter. What separates a bad fail from a trivial one is the violation severity ladder: a single star is a minor issue, two stars is more serious, and three stars marks a critical foodborne-illness risk factor — temperature abuse, bad handwashing, cross-contamination. A restaurant can fail on paperwork alone, which is not the same as failing on food safety. Cooked splits Boston fails accordingly: a fail with a three-star violation reads cooked, a fail on minor items only reads mid.
Source: Boston Inspectional Services, Health Division via Analyze Boston. Cooked refreshes this data daily — this listing's most recent inspection is dated October 2, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.