Ben's Bar Be Cue

• resultPass w/ Conditions
• critical violations1
• last inspectedMarch 25, 2026
• address5931 W North Ave, Chicago 60639

Is Ben's Bar Be Cue clean?

Ben's Bar Be Cue is currently Pass w/ Conditions from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on March 25, 2026. Inspectors wrote up 1 critical violation — the kind most directly linked to foodborne illness. On Cooked's ladder that reads mid 😬.

What did inspectors find at Ben's Bar Be Cue?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on March 25, 2026, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• 🤒sick-employee policy not followedcritical
  Management, Food Employee And Conditional Employee; Knowledge, Responsibilities And Reporting • OBSERVED NO WRITTEN EMPLOYEE HEALTH POLICY ON SITE. INSTRUCTED FACILITY TO ESTABLISH AN APPROPRIATE EMPLOYEE HEALTH POLICY AND MAINTAIN WITH VERIFIABLE SIGNED COPIES ON SITE FOR ALL FOOD EMPLOYEES IN ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF REPORTING AGREEMENT. PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION #7-38-010. CITATION ISSUED.
• 🌡️hot/cold holding temps off
  Proper Hot Holding Temperatures • NOTED INTERNAL TEMPERATURES OF THE FOLLOWING TIME/TEMPERATURE CONTROL FOR SAFETY FOOD ITEMS INSIDE THE FOOD DISPLAY COOLER TO BE IMPROPER: CHICKEN WINGS AT 121F. MANAGER IMMEDIATELY AND VOLUNTARILY DISPOSED OF 5 LBS OF PRODUCTS WORTH $30.00 THROUGH DENATURING PROCESS. PRIORITY VIOLATION #7-38-005. CITATION ISSUED.
• 🏷️food improperly labeled
  Food Properly Labeled; Original Container • OBSERVED FOOD STORED IN CONTAINERS IN ALL THE COOLERS, WALK IN COOLER AND DRY STORAGE WITHOUT PROPER LABELING OF NAME. INSTRUCTED TO PERSON IN CHARGE TO PROVIDE A LABEL REFLECTING THE FOOD ITEM'S NAME WHEN FOOD HAS BEEN REMOVE FROM ITS ORIGINAL PACKAGING.
• 🪳pests in the house
  Insects, Rodents, & Animals Not Present • OBSERVED A 1/4" GAP AT THE BOTTOM OF THE REAR EXIT DOOR. MUST PROVIDE A TIGHT-FITTING SEAL AT ALL OUTER OPENINGS TO PREVENT THE ENTRY OF PESTS.
• ⚠️Contamination Prevented During Food Preparation, Storage & Display • OBSERVED FOOD CONTAINERS STORED ON THE FLOOR THROUGHOUT PREMISES. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO PROPERLY STORE AND PROTECT FOOD ITEMS FROM CONTAMINATION WHILE STORED BY ELEVATING AT LEAST SIX INCHES FROM THE FLOOR ON RAISED SHELVING UNITS.
  Contamination Prevented During Food Preparation, Storage & Display • OBSERVED FOOD CONTAINERS STORED ON THE FLOOR THROUGHOUT PREMISES. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO PROPERLY STORE AND PROTECT FOOD ITEMS FROM CONTAMINATION WHILE STORED BY ELEVATING AT LEAST SIX INCHES FROM THE FLOOR ON RAISED SHELVING UNITS.
• 🛠️surfaces / setup not up to code
  Food & Non-Food Contact Surfaces Cleanable, Properly Designed, Constructed & Used • OBSERVED CARDBOARD USED AS LINER ON FOOD PREP EQUIPMENT AND FLOORS IN COOKING AREA. INSTRUCTED TO TO REMOVE.
• 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimy
  Physical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • OBSERVED MISSING AND DAMAGED FLOOR TILES IN WAREWASHING AREA. INSTRUCTED TO REPAIR TO CREATE A SMOOTH AND EASILY CLEANABLE SURFACE. MUST MAINTAIN AT ALL TIMES. • OBSERVED MOP IN A POSITION THAT DOES NOT ALLOW TO DRY PROPERLY AND PREVENT PEST HARBORAGE. MUST STORE MOP AFTER USE IN A MOUNTED POSITION THAT ALLOWS FOR AIR-DRYING WITHOUT SOILING AND PEST HARBORAGING.

When was Ben's Bar Be Cue last inspected?

Ben's Bar Be Cue has 23 inspections on record going back to March 20, 2012. The 12 most recent are shown below.

Ben's Bar Be Cue vs Austin

Austin runs 65% clean across 770 tracked restaurants — 493 clean, 148 mid, 121 cooked.

Against the 770 spots Cooked tracks in Austin, this one comes out cleaner than 22% of them.

Other spots in Austin

• ✓ Spicy Mix Asian & American
  clean · October 31, 2017
• ✓ M J's Bar B Q
  clean · March 30, 2012
• ✓ Genesis On The Avenue
  clean · November 26, 2014
• ✓ New Food Market, Inc.
  clean · May 28, 2026
• ✓ Austin Dollar Plus
  clean · April 16, 2012
• ✓ 24 Foods Mart
  clean · April 24, 2012

See every restaurant inspection in Austin →

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 March 25, 2026. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.