Pierce Towers Cafeteria

• resultPass
• critical violations0
• last inspectedMarch 5, 2013
• address5514 S University Ave, Chicago 60637

Is Pierce Towers Cafeteria clean?

Pierce Towers Cafeteria is currently Pass from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on March 5, 2013. No critical violations were recorded at that visit. On Cooked's ladder that reads clean 😇.

What did inspectors find at Pierce Towers Cafeteria?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on March 5, 2013, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• ⚠️Clean Multi-Use Utensils And Single Service Articles Properly Stored: No Reuse Of Single Service Articles • MUST WASH,RINSE AND SANITIZE SOILED KNIVES AND PROPERLY STORE. DISCARD ALL CRACKED LIDS AND MULTI USE CONTAINERS.
  Clean Multi-Use Utensils And Single Service Articles Properly Stored: No Reuse Of Single Service Articles • MUST WASH,RINSE AND SANITIZE SOILED KNIVES AND PROPERLY STORE. DISCARD ALL CRACKED LIDS AND MULTI USE CONTAINERS.
• ⚠️Food And Non-Food Contact Surfaces Properly Designed, Constructed And Maintained • MUST REPLACE WORN GASKETS AT REACH IN COOLER BEHIND SALAD BAR.
  Food And Non-Food Contact Surfaces Properly Designed, Constructed And Maintained • MUST REPLACE WORN GASKETS AT REACH IN COOLER BEHIND SALAD BAR.
• 🧫food prep surfaces dirty
  Food And Non-Food Contact Equipment Utensils Clean, Free Of Abrasive Detergents • MUST DETAIL CLEAN THE INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR OF FRYERS,ALL OTHER COOKING EQUIPMENT AND THE VENTILATION HOODS ABOVE THE COOKING EQUIPMENT. MUST REMOVE GREASE AND FOOD DEBRIS BUILD UP. ALSO DETAIL CLEAN THE INTERIOR TOP PANEL OF THE ICE MACHINE AND REMOVE MOLD. MUST DETAIL CLEAN THE 2ND TOILET FROM THE ENTRANCE IN THE MENS EMPLOYEE WASHROOM.
• ⚠️Floors: Constructed Per Code, Cleaned, Good Repair, Coving Installed, Dust-Less Cleaning Methods Used • MUST DETAIL CLEAN FLOORS UNDER ALL COOKING AND DISHWASHING EQUIPMENT.
  Floors: Constructed Per Code, Cleaned, Good Repair, Coving Installed, Dust-Less Cleaning Methods Used • MUST DETAIL CLEAN FLOORS UNDER ALL COOKING AND DISHWASHING EQUIPMENT.
• ⚠️Walls, Ceilings, Attached Equipment Constructed Per Code: Good Repair, Surfaces Clean And Dust-Less Cleaning Methods • MUST DETAIL CLEAN WALLS BEHIND ALL COOKING AND DISHWAHING EQUIPMENT. MUST DETAIL CLEAN CEILING TILES AND REMOVE HEAVY DUST BUILD UP AND FOOD SPILLS OR REPLACE.
  Walls, Ceilings, Attached Equipment Constructed Per Code: Good Repair, Surfaces Clean And Dust-Less Cleaning Methods • MUST DETAIL CLEAN WALLS BEHIND ALL COOKING AND DISHWAHING EQUIPMENT. MUST DETAIL CLEAN CEILING TILES AND REMOVE HEAVY DUST BUILD UP AND FOOD SPILLS OR REPLACE.
• 🌡️thermometers missing
  Lighting: Required Minimum Foot-Candles Of Light Provided, Fixtures Shielded • MUST DETAIL CLEAN THE INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR OF LIGHT SHIELDS ABOVE THE PREP AREAS AND REMOVE DUST,FOOD AND OTHER DEBRIS.
• 🪳pests in the house
  Ventilation: Rooms And Equipment Vented As Required: Plumbing: Installed And Maintained • MUST REPAIR HEAVILY LEAKING PIPES UNDER LARGE DISH MACHINE.

When was Pierce Towers Cafeteria last inspected?

Pierce Towers Cafeteria has 6 inspections on record going back to May 12, 2011.

Pierce Towers Cafeteria vs Hyde Park

Hyde Park runs 73% clean across 335 tracked restaurants — 243 clean, 69 mid, 21 cooked.

Against the 335 spots Cooked tracks in Hyde Park, this one comes out cleaner than 30% of them.

Other spots in Hyde Park

• ✓ Divinity School Coffee Shop
  clean · November 13, 2025
• ✓ University Of Chgo Cafeteria
  clean · May 17, 2013
• ✓ Hutchinson Commons Food Court
  clean · May 15, 2026
• ✓ University Of Chicago (The Pub)
  clean · November 14, 2025
• ✓ Harper Cafe
  clean · November 21, 2025
• ✓! Gargoyle Cafe/Stuart Hall
  mid · March 10, 2016

See every restaurant inspection in Hyde 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 5, 2013. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.