Cooked?
Cafe 53
- resultPass w/ Conditions
- critical violations1
- last inspectedApril 3, 2026
- address1369 E 53Rd St, Chicago 60615
Is Cafe 53 clean?
Cafe 53 is currently Pass w/ Conditions from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on April 3, 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 Cafe 53?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on April 3, 2026, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- 🚰handwashing sink blocked or barecriticalAdequate Handwashing Sinks Properly Supplied And Accessible • OBSERVED HAND SINK IN REAR PREP AREA NOT ACCESSIBLE. BASIN WAS FILLED WITH UTENSILS AND A PLASTIC FOOD CONTAINER. INSTRUCTED THAT SINK MUST BE ACCESSIBLE AND MAINTAINED AT ALL TIMES. PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION #7-38-030(C). SEE ABOVE. • OBSERVED NO PAPER TOWELS AT THE HAND-SINK IN THE PREP AREA. INFORMED PERSON IN CHARGE THAT PAPER TOWELS MUST BE AVAILABLE AT HAND SINKS AT ALL TIMES. FOOD HANDLER OBTAINED PAPER TOWELS FOR HAND SINK DURING TIME OF INSPECTION PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION #7-38-030(C). SEE ABOVE. • OBSERVED HANDSINK IN PREP AREA NOT STOCKED WITH HAND SOAP. INFORMED PERSON IN CHARGE THAT HAND SOAP MUST BE AVAILABLE AT HANDSINKS AT ALL TIMES. FOOD HANDLER OBTAINED HAND SOAP FOR HAND SINK DURING TIME OF INSPECTION. PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION #7-38-030(C). CITATION ISSUED.
- 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimyPhysical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • OBSERVED GREASE BUILDUP, FOOD DEBRIS, AND DIRT ON FLOOR UNDER COOKING EQUIPMENT, ALONG WALLS AND IN ALL CORNERS IN PREP, DISH WASHING AND STORAGE AREAS. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO CLEAN FLOORS UNDER ALL EQUIPMENT, ALONG WALLS AND IN ALL CORNERS IN ALL AREAS. OBSERVED DUST BUILDUP CEILING AND WALL VENTS IN PREP AND STORAGE AREAS. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO CLEAN AND MAINTAIN ALL FANS AND CEILING/WALL VENTS.
When was Cafe 53 last inspected?
Cafe 53 has 14 inspections on record going back to March 11, 2011. The 12 most recent are shown below.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| April 3, 2026 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| April 29, 2025 | Pass | |
| December 10, 2024 | Pass | |
| March 27, 2024 | Pass | |
| August 7, 2020 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| July 31, 2020 | Fail | |
| November 4, 2016 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| October 29, 2015 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| October 22, 2015 | Fail | |
| November 7, 2013 | Pass | |
| March 29, 2012 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| March 25, 2011 | Pass |
Cafe 53 vs Hyde Park
Hyde Park runs 73% clean across 335 tracked restaurants — 243 clean, 69 mid, 21 cooked.
Against the 335 spots Cooked tracks in Hyde Park, this one comes out cleaner than 13% of them.
Other spots in Hyde 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 April 3, 2026. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.