Rainbow Tacos

• resultPass w/ Conditions
• critical violations1
• last inspectedApril 7, 2025
• address5119 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago 60625

Is Rainbow Tacos clean?

Rainbow Tacos is currently listed as closed by Chicago Department of Public Health, as of its inspection on April 7, 2025. A closure means inspectors found conditions serious enough to stop service — it is not the same as a restaurant choosing to shut down, and the listing can change once the problems are fixed and re-inspected.

What did inspectors find at Rainbow Tacos?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on April 7, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• 🚰handwashing sink blocked or barecritical
  Adequate Handwashing Sinks Properly Supplied And Accessible • OBSERVED NO HAND SOAP WAS PROVIDED AT THE HANDWASHING SINKS IN THE FRONT FOOD PREP AREA AND INSIDE THE UNISEX EMPLOYEE WASHROOM.INSTRUCTED TO MAINTAIN ALL HANDWASHING SINKS WITH HAND SOAP AT ALL TIMES.PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION 7-38-030(C),CITATION ISSUED. • OBSERVED NO HAND PAPER TOWELS PROVIDED IN THE FRONT FOOD PREP AREA AND INSIDE THE UNISEX EMPLOYEE WASHROOM.INSTRUCTED TO PROVIDE AND MAINTAIN HAND PAPER TOWELS AT ALL HANDWASHING SINKS AT ALL TIMES.PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION 7-38-030(C),CONSOLIDATED WITH THE ABOVE CITATION.
• 🏷️food improperly labeled
  Food Properly Labeled; Original Container • OBSERVED BULK CONTAINERS IN REAR WITHOUT A LABEL.INSTRUCTED TO PROVIDE THE COMMON NAME ON ALL BULK CONTAINERS TO PROPERLY IDENTIFY ITEM(NAME (SALT, SUGAR, FLOUR ETC).
• 🛠️surfaces / setup not up to code
  Food & Non-Food Contact Surfaces Cleanable, Properly Designed, Constructed & Used • OBSERVED STAINED CUTTING BOARD ON TOP OF THE FRONT PREP LINE COOLER.INSTRUCTED TO RESURFACE OR REPLACE THE CUTTING BOARDS AND MAINTAIN.
• 🚻bathroom / plumbing issues
  Plumbing Installed; Proper Backflow Devices • BACKFLOW PREVENTION DEVICE NOT LOCATED AT UTILITY MOP SINK.MUST INSTALL SO BACKFLOW PREVENTION DEVICE MAY BE LOCATED TO BE SERVICED AND MAINTAINED. • OBSERVED WATER LEAK AT BASE OF FAUCET AT THE DISHWASHING 3-COMPARTMENT SINK.INSTRUCTED TO REPAIR PLUMBING ISSUE AND MAINTAIN.
• ⚠️Adequate Ventilation & Lighting; Designated Areas Used • INSTRUCTED TO DETAIL CLEAN THE EXHAUST HOOD AREA TO REMOVE EXCESSIVE ACCUMULATION OF GREASE BUILD-UP AND MAINTAIN.
  Adequate Ventilation & Lighting; Designated Areas Used • INSTRUCTED TO DETAIL CLEAN THE EXHAUST HOOD AREA TO REMOVE EXCESSIVE ACCUMULATION OF GREASE BUILD-UP AND MAINTAIN.
• ⚠️All Food Employees Have Food Handler Training • OBSERVED A FOOD HANDLING EMPLOYEE WITH EXPIRED FOOD HANDLER CERTIFICATE. INSTRUCTED TO PROVIDE AND MAINTAIN AS REQUIRED.
  All Food Employees Have Food Handler Training • OBSERVED A FOOD HANDLING EMPLOYEE WITH EXPIRED FOOD HANDLER CERTIFICATE. INSTRUCTED TO PROVIDE AND MAINTAIN AS REQUIRED.
• 🥜allergen training missing
  Allergen Training As Required • OBSERVED THE CERTIFIED FOOD MANAGER WITH EXPIRED ALLERGEN TRAINING CERTIFICATE. INSTRUCTED TO PROVIDE AND MAINTAIN.

When was Rainbow Tacos last inspected?

Rainbow Tacos has 8 inspections on record going back to November 6, 2020.

Rainbow Tacos vs Lincoln Square

Lincoln Square runs 32% clean across 922 tracked restaurants — 293 clean, 67 mid, 556 cooked.

Against the 922 spots Cooked tracks in Lincoln Square, this one comes out cleaner than 0% of them.

Other spots in Lincoln Square

• ✓ El Xangarrito
  cooked · June 5, 2024
• ✓ Hoosier Mama Pie Company
  clean · December 8, 2020
• ✓ Gorilla Sushi
  clean · August 10, 2021
• ✓ 7-11
  clean · January 5, 2021
• ✓ 7-11
  clean · January 5, 2021
• ✓ Q Sushi Bar & Omakase
  clean · November 14, 2025

See every restaurant inspection in Lincoln Square →

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 April 7, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.