Taqueria Zapata

• resultPass
• critical violations0
• last inspectedJune 24, 2011
• address4742 N Kimball Ave, Chicago 60625

Is Taqueria Zapata clean?

Taqueria Zapata is currently listed as closed by Chicago Department of Public Health, as of its inspection on June 24, 2011. 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 Taqueria Zapata?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on June 24, 2011, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• ⚠️Food In Original Container, Properly Labeled: Customer Advisory Posted As Needed • Inspector Comments: All food not stored in the original container shall be stored in properly labeled containers. PREP FOODS INSIDE STORAGE COOLER NOT LABLELED, MUST DATA/LABEL.
  Food In Original Container, Properly Labeled: Customer Advisory Posted As Needed • Inspector Comments: All food not stored in the original container shall be stored in properly labeled containers. PREP FOODS INSIDE STORAGE COOLER NOT LABLELED, MUST DATA/LABEL.
• ⚠️Clean Multi-Use Utensils And Single Service Articles Properly Stored: No Reuse Of Single Service Articles • Inspector Comments: Containers and utensils shall be inverted, covered, or otherwise protected from contamination until used. All single-service drinking straws and containers shall be discarded immediately after use. CLEAN MULTI-USE UTENSILS MUST BE PROPERLY STORED ON KITCHEN STORAGE SHELVES.
  Clean Multi-Use Utensils And Single Service Articles Properly Stored: No Reuse Of Single Service Articles • Inspector Comments: Containers and utensils shall be inverted, covered, or otherwise protected from contamination until used. All single-service drinking straws and containers shall be discarded immediately after use. CLEAN MULTI-USE UTENSILS MUST BE PROPERLY STORED ON KITCHEN STORAGE SHELVES.
• ⚠️Food And Non-Food Contact Surfaces Properly Designed, Constructed And Maintained • Inspector Comments: All food and non-food contact equipment and utensils shall be smooth, easily cleanable, and durable, and shall be in good repair. INSTRUCTED TO REPLACE BROKEN GASKETS ON TWO UP-RIGHT PREP REACH IN COOLERS DOORS.
  Food And Non-Food Contact Surfaces Properly Designed, Constructed And Maintained • Inspector Comments: All food and non-food contact equipment and utensils shall be smooth, easily cleanable, and durable, and shall be in good repair. INSTRUCTED TO REPLACE BROKEN GASKETS ON TWO UP-RIGHT PREP REACH IN COOLERS DOORS.
• 🧫food prep surfaces dirty
  Food And Non-Food Contact Equipment Utensils Clean, Free Of Abrasive Detergents • Inspector Comments: All utensils shall be thoroughly cleaned and sanitized after each usage. MUST CLEAN/SANITIZE; COOLERS, FREEZER, COOKING EQUIPMENT, MOP SINK, MICROWAVE OVENS, SHELVES, ALL EQUIPMENT THRU-OUT KITCHEN.
• ⚠️Walls, Ceilings, Attached Equipment Constructed Per Code: Good Repair, Surfaces Clean And Dust-Less Cleaning Methods • Inspector Comments: The walls and ceilings shall be in good repair and easily cleaned. WALL IN KITCHEN NOT CLEAN, MUST CLEAN, SEAL OPENINGS ON WALLS AND CEILING AND REPLACE DAMAGED CEILING PANELS THRU-OUT. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Walls, Ceilings, Attached Equipment Constructed Per Code: Good Repair, Surfaces Clean And Dust-Less Cleaning Methods • Inspector Comments: The walls and ceilings shall be in good repair and easily cleaned. WALL IN KITCHEN NOT CLEAN, MUST CLEAN, SEAL OPENINGS ON WALLS AND CEILING AND REPLACE DAMAGED CEILING PANELS THRU-OUT. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
• 🧻grimy wiping cloths
  Premises Maintained Free Of Litter, Unnecessary Articles, Cleaning Equipment Properly Stored • Inspector Comments: CLUTTER IN FURNACE ROOM AND STORAGE AREAS, INSTRUCTED TO REMOVE UNNECESSARY ARTICLES, CLEAN AND ORGANIZE TO PREVENT PEST HARBORAGE. ARTICLES MUST BE STORED OF FLOORS, AWAY FROM WALLS.

When was Taqueria Zapata last inspected?

Taqueria Zapata has 3 inspections on record going back to June 16, 2011.

Taqueria Zapata vs Albany Park

Albany Park runs 58% clean across 828 tracked restaurants — 478 clean, 149 mid, 198 cooked.

Against the 828 spots Cooked tracks in Albany Park, this one comes out cleaner than 0% of them.

Other spots in Albany Park

• ✓ New York Bakery
  cooked · March 31, 2020
• ✓ La Fogata Nueva Restaurant
  clean · August 11, 2025
• ? Taqueria Los Mogotes De Michoacan Corp.
  cooked · March 24, 2011
• ? Albany Park Grocery, Inc.
  cooked · October 28, 2011
• ✓ Alibaba Cafe
  clean · May 9, 2025
• ✓ Beef & Burger
  cooked · November 9, 2017

See every restaurant inspection in Albany 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 June 24, 2011. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.