Cooked?
Cafe Ballou & Deli
- resultFail
- critical violations0
- last inspectedDecember 10, 2019
- address939 N Western Ave, Chicago 60622
Is Cafe Ballou & Deli clean?
Cafe Ballou & Deli is currently Fail from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on December 10, 2019. No critical violations were recorded at that visit. On Cooked's ladder that reads cooked 🪳.
What did inspectors find at Cafe Ballou & Deli?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on December 10, 2019, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- 🧻grimy wiping clothsWiping Cloths: Properly Used & Stored • OBSERVED WIPING CLOTHS STORED ON TOP OF PREP TABLES AND HAND WASHING SINK. INSTRUCTED TO PROPERLY STORE WIPING CLOTHS IN A SANITIZING SOLUTION WHEN NOT IN USE.
- 🚻bathroom / plumbing issuesPlumbing Installed; Proper Backflow Devices • OBSERVED NO BACKLOW PREVENTION DEVICE AT THE ICE MACHINE LOCATED IN FRONT PREP AREA. INSTRUT TO INSTALL A BACKFLOW PREVENTION DEVICE SO THAT CAN BE LOCATED TO BE SERVICE AND MAINTAIN • SEE VIOLATION #60
- 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimyPhysical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • OBSERVED DIRT AND DEBRIS ON FLOOR UNDERNEATH 3-COMPARTMENT SINK IN REAR PREP AREA. MUST CLEAN AND MAINTAIN. • SEE VIOLATION #60
- ⚠️Adequate Ventilation & Lighting; Designated Areas Used • SEE VIOLATION #60Adequate Ventilation & Lighting; Designated Areas Used • SEE VIOLATION #60
- ⚠️Previous Core Violation Corrected • PREVIOUS CORE VIOLATION NOT CORRECTED FROM INSPECTION REPORT#2240876 ON 11/30/18. VIOLATIONS # 51 NOTED LEAKS AT THE FAUCET OF THE 3 COMPARTMENT SINK. MUST REPAIR AND MAINTAIN. 55 NOTED THE WALLS IN THE PREP AREA NOT FINISHED. INSTRUCTED MANAGER WALLS ARE TO BE SMOOTH AND EASILY CLEANABLE. #56 LIGHT BULBS IN THE REAR PREP AREA MUST BE SHATTER PROOF OR SHIELDED. #58 MANAGER HAS NO ALLERGEN TRAINING. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO COMPLY WITH THE NEW CODE OR CITATIONS WILL FOLLOW. PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION 7-42-090 CITATION ISSUEDPrevious Core Violation Corrected • PREVIOUS CORE VIOLATION NOT CORRECTED FROM INSPECTION REPORT#2240876 ON 11/30/18. VIOLATIONS # 51 NOTED LEAKS AT THE FAUCET OF THE 3 COMPARTMENT SINK. MUST REPAIR AND MAINTAIN. 55 NOTED THE WALLS IN THE PREP AREA NOT FINISHED. INSTRUCTED MANAGER WALLS ARE TO BE SMOOTH AND EASILY CLEANABLE. #56 LIGHT BULBS IN THE REAR PREP AREA MUST BE SHATTER PROOF OR SHIELDED. #58 MANAGER HAS NO ALLERGEN TRAINING. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO COMPLY WITH THE NEW CODE OR CITATIONS WILL FOLLOW. PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION 7-42-090 CITATION ISSUED
When was Cafe Ballou & Deli last inspected?
Cafe Ballou & Deli has 11 inspections on record going back to November 20, 2015.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| May 12, 2020 | closed by the city | |
| December 17, 2019 | — | |
| December 10, 2019 | Fail | |
| December 6, 2019 | Fail | |
| November 19, 2019 | Fail | |
| November 8, 2019 | — | |
| October 31, 2019 | — | |
| November 30, 2018 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| July 11, 2017 | Pass | |
| November 18, 2016 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| November 20, 2015 | Pass |
Cafe Ballou & Deli vs West Town
West Town runs 72% clean across 2,068 tracked restaurants — 1,475 clean, 422 mid, 160 cooked.
Against the 2,068 spots Cooked tracks in West Town, this one comes out cleaner than 6% of them.
Other spots in West Town
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 December 10, 2019. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.