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 code
  Non-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 pocket
  Pesticide not properly labeled or used by unlicensed individual. Pesticide, other toxic chemical improperly used/stored. Unprotected, unlocked bait station used.
• 🧽surfaces not properly sanitizedcritical
  Food 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.

El Viejo Gran Cafe vs Mott Haven-Port Morris

Mott Haven-Port Morris runs 69% clean across 138 tracked restaurants — 87 clean, 11 mid, 28 cooked.

Against the 138 spots Cooked tracks in Mott Haven-Port Morris, this one comes out cleaner than 63% of them.

Other spots in Mott Haven-Port Morris

• ? Villa Tapia Restaurant
  cooked · July 10, 2024
• ⏳ Madison Cafe
  cooked · June 23, 2026
• A Texas Chicken & Burgers
  clean · August 4, 2025
• A Tepangos Pizza & Mexican Food
  clean · August 25, 2026
• C Xime Restaurant
  cooked · June 22, 2026
• A Relish Caterers
  clean · September 27, 2025

See every restaurant inspection 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.

Read the New York ratings guide →

Inspection findings and available history come from the authority’s published records. Cooked checks daily; publication can lag behind an inspection. Read the date on each result and check the official source for newer information.

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.

check your own block 📸

Cooked covers 10 cities on official inspection data — see who's clean, mid, or cooked near you.