Strings Ramen

• resultPass w/ Conditions
• critical violations1
• last inspectedAugust 2, 2024
• address919 W Belmont Ave, Chicago 60657

Is Strings Ramen clean?

Strings Ramen is currently Pass w/ Conditions from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on August 2, 2024. 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 Strings Ramen?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on August 2, 2024, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• 🚰handwashing sink blocked or barecritical
  Adequate Handwashing Sinks Properly Supplied And Accessible • OBSERVED HANDWASHING SINK IN FRONT PREPARATION AREA TO BE BLOCKED WITH A SPICE CART, DISH CART, AND BOXES OF OIL. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO REMOVE ALL ITEMS FROM IN FRONT OF HAND SINK AND ENSURE HAND SINK IS ACCESSIBLE AT ALL TIMES. PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION, 7-38-030(c). CITATION ISSUED.
• ⚠️In-Use Utensils: Properly Stored • OBSERVED SCOOPS IN LARGE DRY STORGAE BINS TO BE STORED WITH HANDLES IN CONTACT WITH FOOD ITEMS IN BINS. INSTRUCTED TO STORE ALL UTENSILS WITH HANDLES NOT IN CONTACT WITH FOOD ITEMS IN BETWEEN USE.
  In-Use Utensils: Properly Stored • OBSERVED SCOOPS IN LARGE DRY STORGAE BINS TO BE STORED WITH HANDLES IN CONTACT WITH FOOD ITEMS IN BINS. INSTRUCTED TO STORE ALL UTENSILS WITH HANDLES NOT IN CONTACT WITH FOOD ITEMS IN BETWEEN USE.
• ⚠️Utensils, Equipment & Linens: Properly Stored, Dried, & Handled • OBSERVED BOWLS AND OTHER UTENSILS STORED WITH FOOD CONTACT SURFACES EXPOSED WITH NO PROTECTION ABOVE AT FRONT PREPARATION AREA. INSTRUCTED TO INVERT OR PROVIDE PROTECTION FROM POTENTIAL SOURCES OF CONTAMINATION.
  Utensils, Equipment & Linens: Properly Stored, Dried, & Handled • OBSERVED BOWLS AND OTHER UTENSILS STORED WITH FOOD CONTACT SURFACES EXPOSED WITH NO PROTECTION ABOVE AT FRONT PREPARATION AREA. INSTRUCTED TO INVERT OR PROVIDE PROTECTION FROM POTENTIAL SOURCES OF CONTAMINATION.
• 🛠️surfaces / setup not up to code
  Food & Non-Food Contact Surfaces Cleanable, Properly Designed, Constructed & Used • OBSERVED GASKET MISSING ON HALF OF THE DOOR OF MIDDLE DOOR ON 3 DOOR REACH IN COOLER AT FRONT PREPARATION AREA. INSTRUCTED MANAGER TO REPLACE AND PROVIDE APPRORPRIATE TIGHT SEALING GASKET. DOOR DOES NOT CURRENTLY STAY CLOSED.
• 🚻bathroom / plumbing issues
  Plumbing Installed; Proper Backflow Devices • OBSERVED LEAK FROM FAUCET AT 3 COMPARTMENT SINK AREA. INSTRUCTED TO SERVICE FAUCET AND MAINTAIN IN GOOD REPAIR.
• ⚠️Toilet Facilities: Properly Constructed, Supplied, & Cleaned • OBSERVED NO SELF CLOSING DOOR PROVIDED AT SINGLE BATHROOM. INSTRUCTED TO PROVIDE MECHANISM TO CREATE SELF CLOSING DOOR.
  Toilet Facilities: Properly Constructed, Supplied, & Cleaned • OBSERVED NO SELF CLOSING DOOR PROVIDED AT SINGLE BATHROOM. INSTRUCTED TO PROVIDE MECHANISM TO CREATE SELF CLOSING DOOR.
• 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimy
  Physical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • OBSERVED FLOOR TILES LOOSE AND FLOOR DRAIN COVER EXTREMELY LOOSE IN MAIN PREPARATION AREA IN BETWEEN STOVES AND REACH IN COOLERS. INSTRUCTED TO REPAIR AND MAINTAIN DAMAGED FLOOR DRAIN AND TILES SURROUNDING IT. • OBSERVED EXCESSIVE FOOD DEBRIS BUILD UP AND SPILLAGE OF WATER BEHIND THE GRILL EQUIPMENT, 3 COMPARTMENT SINK, AND IN THE FLOOR DRAIN, NEXT TO THE DRAIN, AND IN THE MISSING GROUT IN THE FLOOR DRAIN IN CENTER OF MAIN PREPARATION AREA BETWEEN REACH IN COOLERS AND GRILL AREA. INSTRUCTED TO CLEAN AND MAINTAIN FLOORS CLEAR OF ANY SPILLAGE AND FOOD DEBRIS BUILD UP.

When was Strings Ramen last inspected?

Strings Ramen has 11 inspections on record going back to September 30, 2016.

Strings Ramen vs Lake View

Lake View runs 68% clean across 2,211 tracked restaurants — 1,492 clean, 440 mid, 272 cooked.

Against the 2,211 spots Cooked tracks in Lake View, this one comes out cleaner than 19% of them.

Other spots in Lake View

• ✓ The Dugout
  clean · March 3, 2017
• ✓ The Dugout
  clean · March 3, 2017
• ✓ Maki Masters
  clean · October 18, 2016
• ✓ Captain's Catch
  clean · September 14, 2017
• ✓ Captain's Catch
  clean · December 15, 2016
• ✓ Home Run Inn Pizzeria
  clean · February 2, 2017

See every restaurant inspection in Lake View →

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 August 2, 2024. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.