Tropic Island Jerk Chicken

• resultPass w/ Conditions
• critical violations2
• last inspectedJuly 9, 2026
• address553 E 79Th St, Chicago 60619

Is Tropic Island Jerk Chicken clean?

Tropic Island Jerk Chicken is currently Pass w/ Conditions from Chicago Department of Public Health, from an inspection on July 9, 2026. Inspectors wrote up 2 critical violations — the kind most directly linked to foodborne illness. On Cooked's ladder that reads mid 😬.

What did inspectors find at Tropic Island Jerk Chicken?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on July 9, 2026, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• 📋no certified food manager on dutycritical
  Person In Charge Present, Demonstrates Knowledge, And Performs Duties • 2-101.11: **PF** Responsibility -- Assignment OBSERVED PERSON IN CHARGE WITHOUT PROOF OF FOOD SAFETY MANAGEMENT TRAINING DURING TIME OF INSPECTION. MUST PROVIDE.
• 📋certified manager paperwork missingcritical
  City Of Chicago Food Service Sanitation Certificate • 2-101.11: **PF** Responsibility -- Assignment (PIC) OBSERVED FACILITY FOOD HANDLERS PREPARING AND HANDLING TIME AND TEMPERATURE CONTROL FOR SAFETY(TCS) FOODS WITHOUT ORIGINAL CITY OF CHICAGO FOOD SERVICE CERTIFICATE HOLDER ON SITE. INFORMED PERSON IN CHARGE THE CERTIFIED MANAGER AND THEIR ORIGINAL CITY OF CHICAGO FOOD SERVICE CERTIFICATE MUST REMAIN POSTED ON SITE DURING TCS FOOD PREP, COOKING, SERVING AND OPERATING HOURS. PRIORITY FOUNDATION VIOLATION #7-38-012. CITATION ISSUED.
• 🛠️surfaces / setup not up to code
  Food & Non-Food Contact Surfaces Cleanable, Properly Designed, Constructed & Used • 4-501.12// NOTED CUTTING BOARDS ON PREP TABLE AND AT 3 COMPARTMENT SINK WITH DEEP CUTS AND STAINS. INSTRUCTED TO RESTORE TO A SMOOTH AND EASY TO CLEAN SURFACE BY SANDING AND SEALING OR REPLACE AND MAINTAIN.------ 4-101.19// OBSERVED ENCRUSTED GREASE ON COOKING EQUIPMENT AND HEAVY GREASE DEPOSITS UNDERNEATH EQUIPMENT. INSTRUCTED TO DEEP CLEAN, DEGREASE AND SANITIZE.
• 🧹floors, walls, or ceilings grimy
  Physical Facilities Installed, Maintained & Clean • 6-201.11// NOTED FLOORS THROUGHOUT FACILITY IN NEED OF DEEP CLEANING.NOTED BROKEN BASE BOARDS ON SOUTH WALL OF 3 COMPARTMENT SINK NEXT TO WALK-IN COOLER. ENCRUSTED GRIME ON FLOORS UNDERNEATH KITCHEN 3 COMPARTMENT SINK.

When was Tropic Island Jerk Chicken last inspected?

Tropic Island Jerk Chicken has 18 inspections on record going back to November 27, 2020. The 12 most recent are shown below.

Tropic Island Jerk Chicken vs Chatham

Chatham runs 62% clean across 443 tracked restaurants — 275 clean, 85 mid, 81 cooked.

Against the 443 spots Cooked tracks in Chatham, this one comes out cleaner than 20% of them.

Other spots in Chatham

• ✓! Express Seafood Inc.
  mid · December 30, 2020
• ✓! Citgo
  mid · October 3, 2023
• ✓ Oooh Wee It Is
  clean · May 22, 2024
• ✓ Sharks Fish & Chicken
  clean · July 6, 2026
• ✓! Good Neighbor Food Mart
  mid · March 23, 2021
• ✓ Billy's Gyros
  clean · March 22, 2023

See every restaurant inspection in Chatham →

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 9, 2026. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.