Cooked?
Taqueria La Esmeralda
- resultPass
- critical violations0
- last inspectedJanuary 24, 2025
- address6310 N Western Ave, Chicago 60659
Is Taqueria La Esmeralda clean?
Taqueria La Esmeralda is currently Pass from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on January 24, 2025. No critical violations were recorded at that visit. On Cooked's ladder that reads clean 😇.
What did inspectors find at Taqueria La Esmeralda?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on January 24, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- 🪳pests in the houseInsects, Rodents, & Animals Not Present • OBSERVED 1/4 INCH GAP AT REAR EXIT DOOR SWEEP. MUST RODENT PROOF REAR EXIT DOOR AND MAINTAIN.
- 🚻bathroom / plumbing issuesPlumbing Installed; Proper Backflow Devices • 3-COMPARTMENT SINK FAUCET LEAKING AT BASE. MUST REPAIR AND MAINTAIN SINK.
- 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimyPhysical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • OBSERVED FOOD DEBRIS AND DEAD INSECTS ON PREP AREA FLOOR UNDER AND AROUND EQUIPMENT/ALONG WALLS. MUST DETAIL CLEAN FLOOR THROUGHOUT PREP AREA AND MAINTAIN. • OBSERVED SMALL HOLE/GAP IN WALL ABOVE 3-COMPARTMENT SINK. MUST SEAL HOLE/GAP IN WALL ABOVE 3-COMPARTMENT SINK AND MAINTAIN.
When was Taqueria La Esmeralda last inspected?
Taqueria La Esmeralda has 8 inspections on record going back to August 20, 2020.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| January 24, 2025 | Pass | |
| March 22, 2024 | Pass | |
| March 11, 2024 | Fail | |
| April 11, 2023 | Pass w/ Conditions | |
| June 22, 2022 | Pass | |
| May 4, 2021 | Pass | |
| April 23, 2021 | Fail | |
| August 20, 2020 | Pass w/ Conditions |
Taqueria La Esmeralda vs West Ridge
West Ridge runs 58% clean across 966 tracked restaurants — 557 clean, 174 mid, 233 cooked.
Against the 966 spots Cooked tracks in West Ridge, this one comes out cleaner than 45% of them.
Other spots in West Ridge
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 January 24, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.