Fresh Taco

• gradeGrade pending
• inspection score43 pts
• critical violations6
• last inspectedAugust 24, 2026 →
• address1701 Putnam Avenue, Queens 11385
• cuisineTex-Mex
• phone7188216563

Is Fresh Taco clean?

New York currently lists Fresh Taco as grade pending, following an inspection on August 24, 2026 that scored 43 points. The city has not posted a letter yet, and it will not until a re-inspection settles it.

What did inspectors find at Fresh Taco?

These are the violations recorded at the most recent inspection on August 24, 2026, in plain English, with the city's own wording underneath.

• 🍽️food left out / unprotectedcritical
  Food, supplies, or equipment not protected from potential source of contamination during storage, preparation, transportation, display, service or from customer’s refillable, reusable container. Condiments not in single-service containers or dispensed directly by the vendor.
• 🐀rats have moved incritical
  Evidence of rats or live rats in establishment's food or non-food areas.
• 🪰flies in the housecritical
  Filth flies or food/refuse/sewage associated with (FRSA) flies or other nuisance pests in establishment’s food and/or non-food areas. FRSA flies include house flies, blow flies, bottle flies, flesh flies, drain flies, Phorid flies and fruit flies.
• 🕳️basically rolling out the welcome mat for pests
  Establishment is not free of harborage or conditions conducive to rodents, insects or other pests.
• 🛠️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.
• 🔪cross-contamination riskcritical
  Raw, cooked or prepared food is adulterated, contaminated, cross-contaminated, or not discarded in accordance with HACCP plan.
• ⚠️Contract with a pest management professional not in place. Record of extermination activities not kept on premises.
• 🧼staff skipping handwashingcritical
  Personal cleanliness is inadequate. Outer garment soiled with possible contaminant. Effective hair restraint not worn where required. Jewelry worn on hands or arms. Fingernail polish worn or fingernails not kept clean and trimmed.
• 🧫equipment / surface issue
  Thawing procedure improper.
• 🚿plumbing acting up
  Anti-siphonage or back-flow prevention device not provided where required; equipment or floor not properly drained; sewage disposal system in disrepair or not functioning properly. Condensation or liquid waste improperly disposed of.
• 🧽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.
• 🍽️dishwashing setup off
  Single service article not provided. Single service article reused or not protected from contamination when transported, stored, dispensed. Drinking straws not completely enclosed in wrapper or dispensed from a sanitary device.

When was Fresh Taco last inspected?

Fresh Taco has 1 inspection on record going back to August 24, 2026, averaging 43 points.

Fresh Taco vs Ridgewood

Ridgewood runs 78% clean across 301 tracked restaurants — 210 clean, 31 mid, 27 cooked.

Against the 301 spots Cooked tracks in Ridgewood, this one comes out cleaner than 1% of them.

Other spots in Ridgewood

• A Kijitora
  clean · August 5, 2026
• A Minitalia Pizzeria
  clean · October 3, 2026
• ? Bamboo Tropical
  not rated
• ? Cypress Deli Market
  not rated
• ? Bambino's
  not rated
• ? Mestizos Legacy
  not rated

See every restaurant inspection in Ridgewood →

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 August 24, 2026. Inspection results describe one moment in a kitchen's life, not a permanent verdict.

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