Big Stuff

• resultPass w/ Conditions
• critical violations2
• last inspectedFebruary 6, 2012
• address2312 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago 60614

Is Big Stuff clean?

Big Stuff is currently Pass w/ Conditions from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on February 6, 2012. Inspectors wrote up 2 critical violations — the kind most directly linked to foodborne illness. On Cooked's ladder that reads mid 😬.

What did inspectors find at Big Stuff?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on February 6, 2012, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• 📋certified manager paperwork missingcritical
  Facilities To Maintain Proper Temperature • All food establishments that display, prepare, or store potentially hazardous food shall have adequate refrigerated food storage facilities. FACILITIES DO NOT MAINTAIN PROPER TEMPERATURE. OBSERVED PREP COOLER WITH AN AIR TEMPERATURE OF 50F THAT WAS USED TO STORE POTENTIALLY HAZARDOUS FOODS SUCH AS COOKED PASTA AND SALAD DRESSINGS. ALSO OBSERVED A SECOND COOLER THAT WAS NOT RUNNING AT THE TIME OF THE INSPECTION. THE TOP REACH-IN PORTION WAS BEING USED TO STORE POTENTIALLY HAZARDOUS FOODS SUCH AS BLUE CHEESE AND GARBANZO BEANS. FOODS WERE STORED IN CONTAINERS SURROUNDED BY ICE. BOTH COOLERS WERE TAGGED HELD FOR INSPECTION. MUST REPAIR AND MAINTAIN BOTH COOLERS BELOW 40F. FAX A REINSPECTION LETTER TO (312) 746-4240 TO HAVE THE COOLERS REINSPECTED. DO NOT USE UNTIL COOLERS HAVE BEEN REINSPECTED AND HELD FOR INSPECTION TAG HAS BEEN REMOVED. CRITICAL VIOLATION 7-38-005A.
• 🤒sick-employee policy not followedcritical
  Potentially Hazardous Food Meets Temperature Requirement During Storage, Preparation Display And Service • All cold food shall be stored at a temperature of 40F or less. OBSERVED POTENTIALLY HAZARDOUS FOODS STORED AT IMPROPER TEMPERATURES INSIDE OF THE REACH-IN COOLER: COOKED PASTA AT 53F, SALAMI AT 52F, CHEESE AT 51F, RANCH AND OTHER SALAD DRESSINGS AT 54F. MANAGEMENT DISCARDED 10# OF FOOD WORTH $100. CRITICAL VIOLATION 7-38-005A.
• ⚠️* Inspection Report Summary Displayed And Visible To All Customers • One copy of the Food Inspection Report Summary must be displayed and visible to all customers. PREVIOUS INSPECTION REPORT SUMMARY WAS NOT POSTED. MANAGEMENT WAS GIVEN A COPY OF TODAY'S INSPECTION REPORT SUMMARY AND WAS INSTRUCTED TO POST IT IN VIEW OF ALL CUSTOMERS. SERIOUS VIOLATION 7-42-010B.
  * Inspection Report Summary Displayed And Visible To All Customers • One copy of the Food Inspection Report Summary must be displayed and visible to all customers. PREVIOUS INSPECTION REPORT SUMMARY WAS NOT POSTED. MANAGEMENT WAS GIVEN A COPY OF TODAY'S INSPECTION REPORT SUMMARY AND WAS INSTRUCTED TO POST IT IN VIEW OF ALL CUSTOMERS. SERIOUS VIOLATION 7-42-010B.
• ⚠️Food In Original Container, Properly Labeled: Customer Advisory Posted As Needed • All food not stored in the original container shall be stored in properly labeled containers. LABEL AND DATE ALL PREPARED FOODS IN THE COOLERS.
  Food In Original Container, Properly Labeled: Customer Advisory Posted As Needed • All food not stored in the original container shall be stored in properly labeled containers. LABEL AND DATE ALL PREPARED FOODS IN THE COOLERS.
• 🧫food prep surfaces dirty
  Food And Non-Food Contact Equipment Utensils Clean, Free Of Abrasive Detergents • All food and non-food contact surfaces of equipment and all food storage utensils shall be thoroughly cleaned and sanitized daily. CLEAN THE SHELF ABOVE THE PIZZA COOLER AND ALL BULK FOOD CONTAINERS, INTERIOR OF THE MICROWAVE, DUST ON THE VENTILATION HOOD ABOVE THE PIZZA OVEN.
• ⚠️Walls, Ceilings, Attached Equipment Constructed Per Code: Good Repair, Surfaces Clean And Dust-Less Cleaning Methods • The walls and ceilings shall be in good repair and easily cleaned. CLEAN THE DUST ON THE CEILING TILES IN THE PREP AREA, ALSO THE WALL AROUND THE PIZZA OVEN.
  Walls, Ceilings, Attached Equipment Constructed Per Code: Good Repair, Surfaces Clean And Dust-Less Cleaning Methods • The walls and ceilings shall be in good repair and easily cleaned. CLEAN THE DUST ON THE CEILING TILES IN THE PREP AREA, ALSO THE WALL AROUND THE PIZZA OVEN.
• 🌡️thermometers missing
  Lighting: Required Minimum Foot-Candles Of Light Provided, Fixtures Shielded • Shielding to protect against broken glass falling into food shall be provided for all artificial lighting sources in preparation, service, and display facilities. REPLACE THE CRACKED LIGHT SHIELDS IN THE PREP AREA.
• 🧻grimy wiping cloths
  Premises Maintained Free Of Litter, Unnecessary Articles, Cleaning Equipment Properly Stored • All parts of the food establishment and all parts of the property used in connection with the operation of the establishment shall be kept neat and clean and should not produce any offensive odors. REMOVE EXCESSIVE CLUTTER FROM THE FLOOR OF THE BASEMENT STORAGE ROOM. STORE ALL ITEMS AT LEAST 6" OFF OF THE FLOOR.

When was Big Stuff last inspected?

Big Stuff has 5 inspections on record going back to September 7, 2010.

Big Stuff vs Lincoln Park

Lincoln Park runs 67% clean across 1,649 tracked restaurants — 1,089 clean, 360 mid, 187 cooked.

Against the 1,649 spots Cooked tracks in Lincoln Park, this one comes out cleaner than 14% of them.

Other spots in Lincoln Park

• ✓ Latin School
  clean · April 24, 2014
• ✓ Latin School
  clean · April 24, 2014
• ✓ Latin School
  clean · April 24, 2014
• ✕ Bmk Imports
  cooked · September 7, 2010
• ✓ Caminito Argentinean Grill
  clean · August 27, 2013
• ✓ Walgreens
  clean · September 29, 2010

See every restaurant inspection in Lincoln Park →

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 February 6, 2012. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.