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 • 4-602.11 OBSERVED A GREEN SUBSTANCE INSIDE OF THE ICE MACHINE LOCATED BY THE ICE MAKER AND ON THE SIDES OF THE INTERIOR. INSTRUCTED TO CLEAN AND SANITIZE.
• ⚠️Approved Thawing Methods Used • 3-501.13 OBSERVED IMPROPER THAWING OF TCS FOODS. OBSERVED RAW BEEF THAWING AT ROOM TEMPERATURE IN A CONTAINER. INSTRUCTED TO ALWAYS THAW FROZEN PRODUCTS PROPERLY UNDER COLD RUNNING WATER (NOT EXCEEDING 70F) OR IN A REFRIGERATOR AT ALL TIMES.
  Approved Thawing Methods Used • 3-501.13 OBSERVED IMPROPER THAWING OF TCS FOODS. OBSERVED RAW BEEF THAWING AT ROOM TEMPERATURE IN A CONTAINER. INSTRUCTED TO ALWAYS THAW FROZEN PRODUCTS PROPERLY UNDER COLD RUNNING WATER (NOT EXCEEDING 70F) OR IN A REFRIGERATOR AT ALL TIMES.
• 🏷️food improperly labeled
  Food Properly Labeled; Original Container • 3-302.12 OBSERVED DRY STORAGE CONTAINERS NOT LABEL WITH PRODUCT NAME. INSTRUCTED TO LABEL ALL DRY STORAGE CONTAINERS.
• ⚠️In-Use Utensils: Properly Stored • 3-304.12 OBSERVED SCOOPS BEING STORED IN DRY STORAGE CONTAINERS AND PLATES USED TO SCOOP FOOD BEING STORED IN PRODUCT'S CONTAINER. INSTRUCTED TO REMOVE AND STORE ALL UTENSILS PROPERLY.
  In-Use Utensils: Properly Stored • 3-304.12 OBSERVED SCOOPS BEING STORED IN DRY STORAGE CONTAINERS AND PLATES USED TO SCOOP FOOD BEING STORED IN PRODUCT'S CONTAINER. INSTRUCTED TO REMOVE AND STORE ALL UTENSILS PROPERLY.
• 🚿plumbing acting up
  Non-Food/Food Contact Surfaces Clean • 4-601.11 OBSERVED THE INTERIOR OF THE FRYERS WITH ACCUMULATED FOOD AND GREASE DEBRIS. INSTRUCTED TO CLEAN.
• 🚻bathroom / plumbing issues
  Plumbing Installed; Proper Backflow Devices • 5-204.12 UNABLE TO LOCATE THE BACKFLOW PREVENTION DEVICE ON THE ICE MACHINE. INSTRUCTED TO LOCATE OR PROVIDE.
• 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimy
  Physical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • 6-201.13 OBSERVED COVING DETACHED IN VARIOUS AREAS OF THE FOOD PREP AREA. INSTRUCTED TO REPAIR. • 6-501.114 OBSERVED A BAG OF ONIONS BEING STORED DIRECTLY ON THE FLOOR. INSTRUCTED TO ELEVATE EVERYTHING AT LEAST 6 INCHES AND DO NOT STORE FOOD ITEMS ON THE FLOOR.

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 72% clean across 334 tracked restaurants — 238 clean, 53 mid, 40 cooked.

Against the 334 spots Cooked tracks in Avalon Park, this one comes out cleaner than 32% of them.

Other spots in Avalon Park

• ✓ Vegan Now 2Go
  clean · March 2, 2026
• ✓ Mcdonald's
  clean · February 7, 2025
• ✓! 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
  clean · 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.

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.