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El Viejo Gran Cafe
- gradeGrade A
- inspection score11 pts
- critical violations1
- last inspectedSeptember 10, 2025
- address498 East 138 Street, Bronx 10454
- cuisineSpanish
- phone7189933932
Is El Viejo Gran Cafe clean?
El Viejo Gran Cafe is currently Grade A from NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), from an inspection on September 10, 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 Viejo Gran Cafe?
These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on September 10, 2025, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.
- 🛠️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.
- 🗑️garbage situation out of pocketPesticide not properly labeled or used by unlicensed individual. Pesticide, other toxic chemical improperly used/stored. Unprotected, unlocked bait station used.
- 🧽surfaces not properly sanitizedcriticalFood contact surface not properly washed, rinsed and sanitized after each use and following any activity when contamination may have occurred.
When was El Viejo Gran Cafe last inspected?
El Viejo Gran Cafe has 8 inspections on record going back to September 20, 2022, averaging 20 points.
| date | result | score |
|---|---|---|
| September 10, 2025 | Grade A | 11 pts |
| April 14, 2025 | no grade issued ⏳ | 25 pts |
| September 3, 2024 | Grade C | 3 pts |
| August 28, 2024 | closed by the city | 60 pts |
| March 11, 2024 | no grade issued ⏳ | 26 pts |
| March 16, 2023 | Grade A | 12 pts |
| March 1, 2023 | no grade issued ⏳ | 22 pts |
| September 20, 2022 | Grade A | 0 pts |
El Viejo Gran Cafe vs Mott Haven-Port Morris
Mott Haven-Port Morris runs 70% clean across 136 tracked restaurants — 87 clean, 9 mid, 28 cooked.
Against the 136 spots Cooked tracks in Mott Haven-Port Morris, this one comes out cleaner than 61% of them.
Other spots in Mott Haven-Port Morris
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 September 10, 2025. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.