Donerka Alma-Ata

• resultPass w/ Conditions
• critical violations2
• last inspectedOctober 3, 2025
• address5343 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago 60625

Is Donerka Alma-Ata clean?

Donerka Alma-Ata is currently Pass w/ Conditions from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on October 3, 2025. 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 Donerka Alma-Ata?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on October 3, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• 📋no certified food manager on dutycritical
  Person In Charge Present, Demonstrates Knowledge, And Performs Duties • PERSON IN CHARGE DOES NOT HAVE A CITY OF CHICAGO FOOD SERVICE SANITATION CERTIFICATE. PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION.
• 📋certified manager paperwork missingcritical
  City Of Chicago Food Service Sanitation Certificate • NO CITY OF CHICAGO CERTIFIED FOOD MANAGER ON SITE DURING THE FIRST 65 MINUTES WHILE TCS FOODS WERE BEING PREPARED AND SERVED. SUCH AS COOKED CHICKEN BEING HELD AT IMPROPER HOT HOLDING TEMPERATURES. MANAGER WAS TELEPHONED UPON MY ARRIVAL. PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION 7-38-012 CITATION ISSUED.
• 🌡️hot/cold holding temps off
  Proper Hot Holding Temperatures • OBSERVED THE FOLLOWING TCS FOODS HELD HOT AT IMPROPER TEMPERATURES: COOKED CHICKEN ON THE BOTTOM OF THE ROTISSERIE UNIT NOT HEATED OR MEANT FOR HOT HOLDING AT 121.8F. COOKED RICE IN A HOT HOLDING UNIT AT 125.6F. ALL FOOD DISCARDED. PRIORITY VIOLATION 7-38-005 CITATION ISSUED.
• ⚠️Personal Cleanliness • ALL FOOD HANDLERS MUST WEAR EFFECTIVE HAIR RESTRAINTS.
  Personal Cleanliness • ALL FOOD HANDLERS MUST WEAR EFFECTIVE HAIR RESTRAINTS.
• 🧻grimy wiping cloths
  Wiping Cloths: Properly Used & Stored • ALL PREP AREA WIPING CLOTHS MUST BE HELD IN A CONTAINER WITH A SANITIZING SOLUTION BETWEEN USE.
• ⚠️Single-Use/Single-Service Articles: Properly Stored & Used • ALL STORED ITEMS THROUGHOUT THE FACILITY MUST BE ELEVATED FROM THE FLOORS.
  Single-Use/Single-Service Articles: Properly Stored & Used • ALL STORED ITEMS THROUGHOUT THE FACILITY MUST BE ELEVATED FROM THE FLOORS.
• 🛠️surfaces / setup not up to code
  Food & Non-Food Contact Surfaces Cleanable, Properly Designed, Constructed & Used • MUST NOT USE PLASTIC GROCERY BAGS AS FOOD CONTAINERS IN THE FREEZER. MUST BE FOOD GRADE PLASTIC BAGS OR WASHABLE CONTAINERS.
• 🚿plumbing acting up
  Non-Food/Food Contact Surfaces Clean • INTERIOR OF THE REAR TALL REACH-IN COOLER WITH EXCESSIVE POOLING CHICKEN LIQUID. MUST CLEAN AND MAINTAIN. NOTED PEELING PLASTIC ON THE METAL SURFACE OF BOTH ROTISSERIES. INSTRUCTED TO REMOVE.
• 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimy
  Physical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • UNUSED COOLER MUST BE OPERATIONAL OR REMOVED FROM THE PREMISES AND ALL UNUSED ITEMS IN THE REAR HALLWAY STORAGE REMOVED TO PREVENT PEST HARBORING. • MISSING FLOOR TILE AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE REAR HALLWAY STORAGE. MUST REPLACE. MUST NOT USE CARDBOARD AS MATTING FOR FLOORS IN THE SAME HALLWAY STORAGE.
• ⚠️All Food Employees Have Food Handler Training • NO PROOF OF FOOD HANDLER TRAINING OR CERTIFICATES FOR ALL REQUIRED EMPLOYEES. MUST PROVIDE.
  All Food Employees Have Food Handler Training • NO PROOF OF FOOD HANDLER TRAINING OR CERTIFICATES FOR ALL REQUIRED EMPLOYEES. MUST PROVIDE.

When was Donerka Alma-Ata last inspected?

Donerka Alma-Ata has 4 inspections on record going back to November 8, 2024.

Donerka Alma-Ata vs Lincoln Square

Lincoln Square runs 59% clean across 922 tracked restaurants — 536 clean, 152 mid, 228 cooked.

Against the 922 spots Cooked tracks in Lincoln Square, this one comes out cleaner than 26% of them.

Other spots in Lincoln Square

• ✓ Colectivo Coffee
  clean · October 1, 2025
• ✓ Piccadilly Market
  clean · June 2, 2026
• ✓! Piccadilly Market
  mid · January 7, 2025
• ✓ Palmitas Mexican Restaurant
  clean · January 27, 2026
• ✓ Kanin
  clean · August 4, 2025
• ✓ El Xangarrito Restaurant
  clean · January 20, 2026

See every restaurant inspection in Lincoln Square →

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 October 3, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.