Cooked?
El Mesquite
- resultPass
- critical violations0
- last inspectedAugust 29, 2011
- address1756 W 18Th St, Chicago 60608
Is El Mesquite clean?
El Mesquite is currently listed as closed by Chicago Department of Public Health, as of its inspection on August 29, 2011. A closure means inspectors found conditions serious enough to stop service — it is not the same as a restaurant choosing to shut down, and the listing can change once the problems are fixed and re-inspected.
What did inspectors find at El Mesquite?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on August 29, 2011, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- ⚠️Food And Non-Food Contact Surfaces Properly Designed, Constructed And Maintained • All food and non-food contact equipment and utensils shall be smooth, easily cleanable, and durable, and shall be in good repair. REMOVE THE OLD UNUSED EQUIPMENT SO NO INSECT OR RODENT HARBORAGE.Food And Non-Food Contact Surfaces Properly Designed, Constructed And Maintained • All food and non-food contact equipment and utensils shall be smooth, easily cleanable, and durable, and shall be in good repair. REMOVE THE OLD UNUSED EQUIPMENT SO NO INSECT OR RODENT HARBORAGE.
- ⚠️Floors: Constructed Per Code, Cleaned, Good Repair, Coving Installed, Dust-Less Cleaning Methods Used • The floors shall be constructed per code, be smooth and easily cleaned, and be kept clean and in good repair. CLEAN THE FLOOR IN THE BASEMENT HAS DUST AND DIRT ON IT.Floors: Constructed Per Code, Cleaned, Good Repair, Coving Installed, Dust-Less Cleaning Methods Used • The floors shall be constructed per code, be smooth and easily cleaned, and be kept clean and in good repair. CLEAN THE FLOOR IN THE BASEMENT HAS DUST AND DIRT ON IT.
- ⚠️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 WALL BEHIND THE COOKING EQUIPMENT HAS SPLASHED ON FOOD DEBRIS ON IT.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 WALL BEHIND THE COOKING EQUIPMENT HAS SPLASHED ON FOOD DEBRIS ON IT.
When was El Mesquite last inspected?
El Mesquite has 3 inspections on record going back to January 26, 2011.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| January 24, 2013 | closed by the city | |
| August 29, 2011 | Pass | |
| January 26, 2011 | Pass |
El Mesquite vs Lower West Side
Lower West Side runs 68% clean across 1,153 tracked restaurants — 775 clean, 162 mid, 205 cooked.
Against the 1,153 spots Cooked tracks in Lower West Side, this one comes out cleaner than 0% of them.
Other spots in Lower West Side
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 August 29, 2011. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.