Cooked?
El Gallo Taqueria
- gradeGrade A
- inspection score12 pts
- critical violations1
- last inspectedAugust 19, 2025
- address214 Highlawn Avenue, Brooklyn 11223
- cuisineMexican
- phone9176682332
Is El Gallo Taqueria clean?
El Gallo Taqueria is currently Grade A from NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), from an inspection on August 19, 2025. Inspectors wrote up 1 critical violation — the kind most directly linked to foodborne illness. On Cooked's ladder that reads clean 😇.
What did inspectors find at El Gallo Taqueria?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on August 19, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- 🧫equipment / surface issueSwollen, leaking, rusted or otherwise damaged canned food to be returned to distributor not segregated from intact product and clearly labeled DO NOT USE
- 🔪cross-contamination riskcriticalRaw, cooked or prepared food is adulterated, contaminated, cross-contaminated, or not discarded in accordance with HACCP plan.
- 🛠️surfaces / setup not up to codeNon-food contact surface or equipment made of unacceptable material, not kept clean, or not properly sealed, raised, spaced or movable to allow accessibility for cleaning on all sides, above and underneath the unit.
When was El Gallo Taqueria last inspected?
El Gallo Taqueria has 3 inspections on record going back to June 5, 2023, averaging 16 points.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| August 19, 2025 | Grade A | 12 pts |
| January 15, 2025 | no grade issued ⏳ | 26 pts |
| June 5, 2023 | Grade A | 10 pts |
El Gallo Taqueria vs Bensonhurst East
Bensonhurst East runs 82% clean across 139 tracked restaurants — 99 clean, 9 mid, 13 cooked.
Against the 139 spots Cooked tracks in Bensonhurst East, this one comes out cleaner than 40% of them.
Other spots in Bensonhurst East
How New York grades restaurants
New York City health inspectors score violations in points, and lower is better: 0–13 points earns an A, 14–27 a B, and 28 or more a C. Every restaurant is inspected at least once a year, and the letter has to be posted in the window. A restaurant that scores 14 or more on the first inspection of a cycle does not get a letter right away — it stays “Grade Pending” until a re-inspection settles it, which is why some spots here show an hourglass instead of a letter. Cooked only ever shows a letter the city actually posted; we never infer one from a score.
Source: NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) via NYC Open Data. Cooked refreshes this data daily — this listing's most recent inspection is dated August 19, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.