Cooked?
Society Coffee Bar
- resultPass w/ Conditions
- critical violations1
- last inspectedJuly 10, 2025
- address1816 N Wells St, Chicago 60614
Is Society Coffee Bar clean?
Society Coffee Bar is currently Pass w/ Conditions from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on July 10, 2025. Inspectors wrote up 1 critical violation — the kind most directly linked to foodborne illness. On Cooked's ladder that reads mid 😬.
What did inspectors find at Society Coffee Bar?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on July 10, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- 🤒sick-employee policy not followedcriticalManagement, Food Employee And Conditional Employee; Knowledge, Responsibilities And Reporting • OBSERVED NO WRITTEN EMPLOYEE HEALTH POLICY ON THE PREMISES.INSTRUCTED TO PROVIDE A SIGNED EMPLOYEE HEALTH POLICY FOR EACH EMPLOYEE AND MAINTAIN AS REQUIRED. PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION 7-38-010.
- 🪳pests in the houseInsects, Rodents, & Animals Not Present • NOTED EVIDENCE OF ANIMALS (DOGS) BROUGHT INSIDE THE PREMISE AT THE TIME OF INSPECTION THAT ARE NOT SERVICE DOGS. INSTRUCTED MANAGEMENT: NO ANIMALS ARE ALLOWED INSIDE A FOOD ESTABLISHMENT UNLESS WITH PROOF THAT THE ANIMAL IS A SERVICE DOG. PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION #7-40-060. CITATION ISSUED.
- 🛠️surfaces / setup not up to codeFood & Non-Food Contact Surfaces Cleanable, Properly Designed, Constructed & Used • OBSERVED PLASTIC PROTECTIVE LAYER ON TOP OF ICE MACHINE AT TIME OF INSPECTION. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO REMOVE AND PROVIDE A SMOOTH AND EASILY CLEANABLE SURFACE. • NOTED RAW WOOD ON UNDERSIDE OF ALL COUNTERS AT THE FRONT SERVICE COUNTER AND PREP AREA TOPS. MULTIPLE SOURCES OF MOISTURE AND WATER AND EQUIPMENT PRESENT. INSTRUCTED TO SEAL ALL RAW WOOD TO ENSURE THAT IT IS NON-POROUS, SMOOTH AND EASY TO CLEAN.
- 🚻bathroom / plumbing issuesPlumbing Installed; Proper Backflow Devices • NOTED LEAKAGE AT THE BOTTOM PIPE OF THE HAND WASHING SINK AT THE KITCHEN PREP AREA. INSTRUCTED TO REPAIR AND MAINTAIN. • OBSERVED THREE (3) PIECES OF EQUIPMENT IN PREP AREA TO NOT HAVE BACKFLOW PREVENTION DEVICE LOCATED TO BE ACCESSIBLE AND SERVICEABLE FOR EACH MACHINE: COFFEE MAKER, ESPRESSO MACHINE, AND ICE MACHINE. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO PROVIDE/INSTALL BACKFLOW PREVENTION DEVICES FOR ALL.
- 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimyPhysical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • OBSERVED ONE WALL ON SOUTH WALL BEHIND PREP AREA TO HAVE AN UNFINISHED BRICKWORK ON WALL BEHIND EQUIPMENT AND PREP SURFACES. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO FINISH SOUTH WALL BEHIND PREP AREA TO PROVIDE A SMOOTH AND AND NON ABSORBENT SURFACE OF THE UNFINISHED BRICK WORK. • OBSERVED VENT/FAN COVER ON THE FAN IN THE BATHROOM, AND THE VENT COVER ON THE EXHAUST LOCATED ON WALL OVER THE 3 COMPARTMENT SINK TO BE MISSING, CREATING A NOT SMOOTH AND EASILY CLEANABLE SURFACE. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO PROVIDE VENT COVER AND ENSURE SURFACES ARE SMOOTH AND EASILY CLEANABLE. • OBSERVED MISSING FLOOR TILE AT BASE OF BAR/PREP TABLE ACROSS FROM ICE MACHINE AT TIME OF INSPECTION. INSTRUCTED TO SERVICE/REPLACE AND MAINTAIN IN GOOD REPAIR. • OBSERVED EXPOSED STUDS/OPEN WALL CAVITY ON SOUTH WALL NEXT TO BASE OF 3 COMPARTMENT SINK, AND ABOVE THE BATHROOM DOOR LEADING TO THE HVAC FILTER. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO FINISH AND ENCLOSE ALL EXPOSED STUDS, SUCH AS WITH AN ACCESS DOOR OR COVER.
When was Society Coffee Bar last inspected?
Society Coffee Bar has 3 inspections on record going back to March 7, 2025.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| July 10, 2025 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| April 16, 2025 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| March 7, 2025 | — |
Society Coffee Bar vs Lincoln Park
Lincoln Park runs 67% clean across 1,649 tracked restaurants — 1,089 clean, 360 mid, 187 cooked.
Against the 1,649 spots Cooked tracks in Lincoln Park, this one comes out cleaner than 18% of them.
Other spots in Lincoln 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 July 10, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.