Top Cafe

• resultPass
• critical violations0
• last inspectedMarch 3, 2023
• address4393 N Elston Ave, Chicago 60641

Is Top Cafe clean?

Top Cafe is currently listed as closed by Chicago Department of Public Health, as of its inspection on March 3, 2023. 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 Top Cafe?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on March 3, 2023, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimy
  Physical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • 6-501.114 OBSERVED SEVERAL UNUSED COOLERS IN THE FOOD PREP AREA. MANAGEMENT INSTRUCTED TO REMOVE ALL UNUSED EQUIPMENT FROM THE PREMISES.
• ⚠️Adequate Ventilation & Lighting; Designated Areas Used • 6-202.11 NO LIGHT SHIELD PROVIDED FOR THE LIGHT FIXTURE INSIDE OF THE WALK-IN COOLER. MUST INSTALL AND MAINTAIN.
  Adequate Ventilation & Lighting; Designated Areas Used • 6-202.11 NO LIGHT SHIELD PROVIDED FOR THE LIGHT FIXTURE INSIDE OF THE WALK-IN COOLER. MUST INSTALL AND MAINTAIN.
• 🥜allergen training missing
  Allergen Training As Required • 2-102.13 NO ALLERGEN TRAINING CERTIFICATE PROVIDED BY THE CERTIFIED FOOD MANAGER. MANAGEMENT INSTRUCTED THAT ALL CERTIFIED FOOD MANAGERS MUST HAVE AN ALLERGEN TRAINING CERTIFICATE.

When was Top Cafe last inspected?

Top Cafe has 4 inspections on record going back to January 5, 2023.

Top Cafe vs Irving Park

Irving Park runs 64% clean across 804 tracked restaurants — 516 clean, 141 mid, 146 cooked.

Against the 804 spots Cooked tracks in Irving Park, this one comes out cleaner than 0% of them.

Other spots in Irving Park

• ✓! Brasa Roja
  mid · January 7, 2026
• ✓ Burrito Arceliano
  clean · February 26, 2026
• ✓ Happy Day Tap
  clean · March 5, 2024
• ✓ Happy Day Tap
  clean · March 5, 2024
• ? Niko's Bakery
  cooked · October 25, 2024
• ✓ House Of Wah Sun
  clean · March 7, 2023

See every restaurant inspection in Irving 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 March 3, 2023. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.