Potbelly Sandwich Works
- resultPass w/ Conditions
- critical violations2
- last inspectedDecember 31, 2025 →
- address277 E Ontario St, Chicago 60611
Is Potbelly Sandwich Works clean?
Potbelly Sandwich Works is currently Pass w/ Conditions from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on December 31, 2025. Inspectors wrote up 2 critical violations — the kind most directly linked to foodborne illness. On Cooked's ladder that reads mid 😬.
What did inspectors find at Potbelly Sandwich Works?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on December 31, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- 📋certified manager paperwork missingcriticalCity Of Chicago Food Service Sanitation Certificate
- 🚰handwashing sink blocked or barecriticalAdequate Handwashing Sinks Properly Supplied And Accessible
- 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimyPhysical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean
When was Potbelly Sandwich Works last inspected?
Potbelly Sandwich Works has 20 inspections on record going back to July 11, 2011. The 12 most recent are shown below.
December 31, 2025 Pass w/ Conditions
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View full inspection →December 3, 2024 Pass w/ Conditions
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View full inspection →March 26, 2024 Pass w/ Conditions
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View full inspection →April 26, 2023 Pass
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View full inspection →January 21, 2022 Pass
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View full inspection →May 20, 2021 Pass
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View full inspection →April 8, 2020 Pass
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View full inspection →October 8, 2019 Pass
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View full inspection →January 22, 2019 Pass
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View full inspection →January 26, 2018 Pass
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View full inspection →January 23, 2017 Pass
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View full inspection →January 13, 2017 Fail
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View full inspection →Potbelly Sandwich Works vs Near North Side
Near North Side runs 85% clean across 1,813 tracked restaurants — 1,534 clean, 250 mid, 18 cooked.
Against the 1,813 spots Cooked tracks in Near North Side, this one comes out cleaner than 2% of them.
Other spots in Near North Side
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 December 31, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.
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