El Taco Express

• resultPass
• critical violations0
• last inspectedMarch 3, 2026 →
• address8548 S Stony Island Ave, Chicago 60617

Is El Taco Express clean?

El Taco Express is currently Pass from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on March 3, 2026. No critical violations were recorded at that visit. On Cooked's ladder that reads clean 😇.

What did inspectors find at El Taco Express?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on March 3, 2026, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• 🧽surfaces not properly sanitized
  Food-Contact Surfaces: Cleaned & Sanitized
• ⚠️Approved Thawing Methods Used
• 🏷️food improperly labeled
  Food Properly Labeled; Original Container
• ⚠️In-Use Utensils: Properly Stored
• 🚿plumbing acting up
  Non-Food/Food Contact Surfaces Clean
• 🚻bathroom / plumbing issues
  Plumbing Installed; Proper Backflow Devices
• 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimy
  Physical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean

When was El Taco Express last inspected?

El Taco Express has 7 inspections on record going back to January 18, 2023.

El Taco Express vs Avalon Park

Avalon Park runs 77% clean across 156 tracked restaurants — 118 clean, 22 mid, 13 cooked.

Against the 156 spots Cooked tracks in Avalon Park, this one comes out cleaner than 29% of them.

Other spots in Avalon Park

• ✓ Vegan Now 2Go
  clean · March 2, 2026
• ✓ Mcdonald's
  clean · August 7, 2026
• ✓! Happy Hour Market Tobacco & Grocery
  mid · March 17, 2023
• ✓ Chicago Hoagie House
  clean · March 19, 2026
• ✕ Stony Beverage Depot
  cooked · July 9, 2026
• ✓ Max Market
  cooked · March 21, 2023

See every restaurant inspection in Avalon 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.

Read the Chicago ratings guide →

Inspection findings and available history come from the authority’s published records. Cooked checks daily; publication can lag behind an inspection. Read the date on each result and check the official source for newer information.

Source: Chicago Department of Public Health via Chicago Data Portal. Cooked refreshes this data daily — this listing's most recent inspection is dated March 3, 2026. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.

check your own block 📸

Cooked covers 10 cities on official inspection data — see who's clean, mid, or cooked near you.