Cooked?
African Food Palace
- resultPass
- critical violations0
- last inspectedJune 23, 2025
- address8918 S Commercial Ave, Chicago 60617
Is African Food Palace clean?
African Food Palace is currently Pass from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on June 23, 2025. No critical violations were recorded at that visit. On Cooked's ladder that reads clean 😇.
What did inspectors find at African Food Palace?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on June 23, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- 🌡️thermometers missingThermometers Provided & Accurate • OBSERVED VARIOUS REACH IN COOLERS WITH NO THERMOMETERS INSTRUCTED TO INSTALL AND MAINTAIN
- 🧻grimy wiping clothsWiping Cloths: Properly Used & Stored • OBSERVED WIPING CLOTHS ON COUNTER AND NO SANITIZING BUCKETS. INSTRUCTED TO STORE ALL WIPING CLOTHS IN A CLEAN SANITIZING SOLUTION
- ⚠️Utensils, Equipment & Linens: Properly Stored, Dried, & Handled • ALL UTENSILS STORED IN TUBS ON SHELF IN NEED OF WASHING AND SANITIZING DUE TO RODENT CONTAMINATION. INSTRUCTED TO REMOVE ALL UTENSILS. WASH, RINSE AND SANITIZEUtensils, Equipment & Linens: Properly Stored, Dried, & Handled • ALL UTENSILS STORED IN TUBS ON SHELF IN NEED OF WASHING AND SANITIZING DUE TO RODENT CONTAMINATION. INSTRUCTED TO REMOVE ALL UTENSILS. WASH, RINSE AND SANITIZE
- 🚿plumbing acting upNon-Food/Food Contact Surfaces Clean • ALL PREP TABLES AND COUNTERS IN NEED OF CLEANING TO REMOVE ALL BUILD UP. INSTRUCTED TO DETAIL CLEAN AND MAINTAIN
- 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimyPhysical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • ALL UNNECESSARY CLUTTER IN BASEMENT AND IN DINING AREA IN NEED OF REMOVAL. INSTRUCTED TO REMOVE AND MAINTAIN
When was African Food Palace last inspected?
African Food Palace has 9 inspections on record going back to May 12, 2021.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| November 5, 2025 | closed by the city | |
| June 23, 2025 | Pass | |
| June 12, 2025 | Fail | |
| August 1, 2024 | Pass | |
| January 5, 2024 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| January 30, 2023 | Pass | |
| January 23, 2023 | Fail | |
| July 26, 2021 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| May 12, 2021 | — |
African Food Palace vs South Chicago
South Chicago runs 75% clean across 144 tracked restaurants — 106 clean, 21 mid, 15 cooked.
Against the 144 spots Cooked tracks in South Chicago, this one comes out cleaner than 29% of them.
Other spots in South Chicago
How Chicago grades restaurants
Chicago does not use letter grades. Every inspection ends in one of three official results: Pass, Pass with Conditions, or Fail. Pass with Conditions means violations were found but corrected on the spot or under a deadline — the restaurant is open, with homework. A Fail means serious violations went uncorrected, and it usually brings a re-inspection within days. Chicago also flags “priority” violations, the ones most likely to actually make someone sick. Cooked reads Pass as clean, Pass with Conditions as mid, and Fail as cooked, and shows the itemized violations behind each result.
Source: Chicago Department of Public Health via Chicago Data Portal. Cooked refreshes this data daily — this listing's most recent inspection is dated June 23, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.