Esencia Urban Kitchen

• resultPass w/ Conditions
• critical violations0
• last inspectedMay 8, 2026
• address3351 N Broadway, Chicago 60657

Is Esencia Urban Kitchen clean?

Esencia Urban Kitchen is currently Pass w/ Conditions from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on May 8, 2026. No critical violations were recorded at that visit. On Cooked's ladder that reads mid 😬.

What did inspectors find at Esencia Urban Kitchen?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on May 8, 2026, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• 🧊cold food not cold enough
  Proper Cold Holding Temperatures • NOTED INTERNAL TEMPERATURES OF THE FOLLOWING TIME/TEMPERATURE CONTROL FOR SAFETY FOOD ITEMS INSIDE THE FOOD DISPLAY COOLER TO BE IMPROPER: COOKED POTATOES RANGING IN TEMPERATURE 48.6F-51.9F, COOKED PORK AT 49.8F, COOKED SHREDDED CHICKEN AT 51.6F, PRE-POACHED EGGS AT 56.8F, SHELLED EGGS RANGING IN TEMPERATURE FROM 44.6F-59.8F AND A VARIETY OF SOUPS RANGING IN TEMPERATURE 46.7F-51.9F MANAGER IMMEDIATELY AND VOLUNTARILY DISPOSED OF 35 LBS OF PRODUCTS WORTH $2150.00 THROUGH DENATURING PROCESS. PRIORITY VIOLATION #7-38-005. CITATION ISSUED.
• 🧫food prep surfaces dirty
  Proper Cooling Methods Used; Adequate Equipment For Temperature Control • NOTED IMPROPER COLD-HOLD TEMPERATURE OF ONE DOOR REFER UNIT AT 51.0F. INFORMED ALL REFRIGERATOR UNITS SHALL MAINTAIN A PROPER TEMPERATURE OF 41F AND BELOW. REFRIGERATOR UNIT MUST NOT BE USED UNTIL REINSPECTED BY CHICAGO DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH (CDPH). PRIORITY VIOLATION #7-38-005. CITATION ISSUED.
• 🏷️food improperly labeled
  Food Properly Labeled; Original Container • NOTED NO LABELS FOR BULK STORAGE CONTAINERS (FLOUR AND SUGAR). INSTRUCTED PERSON IN CHARGE ALL BULK AND WORKING FOOD INGREDIENT CONTAINERS MUST BE LABELED WITH CONTENTS NAME.
• 🛠️surfaces / setup not up to code
  Food & Non-Food Contact Surfaces Cleanable, Properly Designed, Constructed & Used • OBSERVED FOIL USED AS LINER ON FOOD PREP EQUIPMENT AND TABLES. INSTRUCTED TO REMOVE.
• 🚻bathroom / plumbing issues
  Plumbing Installed; Proper Backflow Devices • OBSERVED NO BACKFLOW PREVENTER DEVICE ON THE UTILITYSINK IN BASEMENT STORAGE AREA. INSTRUCTED TO INSTALL TO ENSURE DEVICE CAN BE LOCATED, SERVICED, AND MAINTAINED.
• 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimy
  Physical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • INSTRUCTED TO DETAIL CLEAN AND MAINTAIN ALL COOKING EQUIPMENT, INGREDIENT CONTAINERS, RACKS AND SHELVING WITH FLOUR, DUST, GREASE AND DIRT BUILD-UP THROUGHOUT. RECOMMENDED TO INCREASE CLEANING FREQUENCY AND MAINTAIN AT ALL TIMES. • OBSERVED CHIPPED PAINT ON THE CEILING AND WALLS IN THE KITCHEN AND TOILET ROOMS. INSTRUCTED TO RESURFACE AND REPAINT CHIPPED AREAS TO ENSURE WALLS ARE SEALED, SMOOTH AND EASILY CLEANABLE.

When was Esencia Urban Kitchen last inspected?

Esencia Urban Kitchen has 20 inspections on record going back to June 28, 2013. The 12 most recent are shown below.

Esencia Urban Kitchen vs Lake View

Lake View runs 68% clean across 2,211 tracked restaurants — 1,492 clean, 440 mid, 272 cooked.

Against the 2,211 spots Cooked tracks in Lake View, this one comes out cleaner than 56% of them.

Other spots in Lake View

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  cooked · November 6, 2014
• ✓! Old Crow
  cooked · May 8, 2015
• ✓ Old Crow
  clean · October 24, 2013
• ✓ Great Falafel
  cooked · June 10, 2013
• ✓! Rice'n Bread
  cooked · June 5, 2015
• ✓ El Authentico 5 De Mayo
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See every restaurant inspection in Lake View →

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 May 8, 2026. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.