Cooked?
Lai Lai Oriental Express
- resultFail
- critical violations1
- last inspectedFebruary 3, 2011
- address222 W Merchandise Mart Plz, Chicago 60654
Is Lai Lai Oriental Express clean?
Lai Lai Oriental Express is currently Fail from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on February 3, 2011. Inspectors wrote up 1 critical violation — the kind most directly linked to foodborne illness. On Cooked's ladder that reads cooked 🪳.
What did inspectors find at Lai Lai Oriental Express?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on February 3, 2011, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- 🚿water/temperature at the sink offcriticalWater Source: Safe, Hot & Cold Under City Pressure • All food establishments shall be provided with an adequate supply of hot and cold water under pressure properly connected to the city water supply. NO HOT WATER PROVIDED TO THE ESTABLISHMENT. OBSERVED HOT WATER AT THE 3 COMPARTMENT SINK AT 52-84F. MANAGEMENT INSTRUCTED THAT HOT WATER ABOVE 110F MUST BE PROVIDED AT THE 3 COMPARTMENT SINK TO PROPERLY WASH DISHES AND UTENSILS. CRITICAL VIOLATION 7-38-030.
- ⚠️Dish Washing Facilities: Properly Designed, Constructed, Maintained, Installed, Located And Operated • OBSERVED WASTE WATER (GREASE AND FOOD PARTICLES) BACKING UP INTO THE LEFT AND RIGHT COMPARTMENTS OF THE 3 COMPARTMENT SINK WHEN THE MIDDLE COMPARTMENT WAS FILLED WITH WATER AND ALLOWED TO DRAIN. MANAGEMENT INSTRUCTED THAT 3 COMPARMENT SINK MUST PROPERLY DRAIN WITHOUT BACKUP INTO THE OTHER SINKS. SERIOUS VIOLATION 7-38-030.Dish Washing Facilities: Properly Designed, Constructed, Maintained, Installed, Located And Operated • OBSERVED WASTE WATER (GREASE AND FOOD PARTICLES) BACKING UP INTO THE LEFT AND RIGHT COMPARTMENTS OF THE 3 COMPARTMENT SINK WHEN THE MIDDLE COMPARTMENT WAS FILLED WITH WATER AND ALLOWED TO DRAIN. MANAGEMENT INSTRUCTED THAT 3 COMPARMENT SINK MUST PROPERLY DRAIN WITHOUT BACKUP INTO THE OTHER SINKS. SERIOUS VIOLATION 7-38-030.
- 🧫food prep surfaces dirtyFood And Non-Food Contact Equipment Utensils Clean, Free Of Abrasive Detergents • All food and non-food contact surfaces of equipment and all food storage utensils shall be thoroughly cleaned and sanitized daily. DETAIL CLEAN THE WIRE STORAGE RACKS NEAR THE 3 COMPARMENT SINK AND IN THE WALK-IN COOLER, PREP TABLES, INTERIOR OF PREP COOLER, CABINETS UNDER FRONT STORAGE COUNTER.
- ⚠️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. DETAIL CLEAN THE FLOOR IN BOTH PREP AREAS.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. DETAIL CLEAN THE FLOOR IN BOTH PREP AREAS.
- ⚠️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. DETAIL CLEAN THE GREASE ON THE WALL BEHIND THE COOKING EQUIPMENT.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. DETAIL CLEAN THE GREASE ON THE WALL BEHIND THE COOKING EQUIPMENT.
- 🪳pests in the houseVentilation: Rooms And Equipment Vented As Required: Plumbing: Installed And Maintained • 1 SINK STOPPER IS MISSING FROM THE 3 COMPARTMENT SINK. MUST PROVIDE.
When was Lai Lai Oriental Express last inspected?
Lai Lai Oriental Express has 4 inspections on record going back to January 7, 2010.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| February 21, 2012 | closed by the city | |
| February 3, 2011 | Fail | |
| February 24, 2010 | Pass | |
| January 7, 2010 | Pass |
Lai Lai Oriental Express vs Loop
Loop runs 70% clean across 3,616 tracked restaurants — 2,521 clean, 764 mid, 300 cooked.
Against the 3,616 spots Cooked tracks in Loop, this one comes out cleaner than 7% of them.
Other spots in Loop
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 February 3, 2011. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.