How restaurant inspections work in Illinois
Who inspects Illinois's restaurants, how results are graded, and how to read them on CleanPlate.
CleanPlate's Illinois coverage centers on Chicago, whose health department publishes one of the oldest and richest open inspection datasets in the country — every inspection since 2010.
Who does the inspecting
The Chicago Department of Public Health inspects the city's food establishments, prioritized by risk tier: full-service kitchens see inspectors far more often than packaged-goods retailers.
How results are graded
Chicago doesn't issue letter grades. Inspections end in a result — Pass, Pass with Conditions, or Fail — with the violation detail attached. “Pass with Conditions” means serious violations were found but corrected during the inspection or under an approved plan; CleanPlate shows it as CONDITIONAL. Fail results trigger re-inspection and can escalate to license action.
Reading it on CleanPlate
Every Illinois restaurant page on CleanPlate shows the establishment's current standing, its full inspection history with dates, and a link to the official agency behind the record. Grades are shown exactly as reported; where the source publishes no summary grade, the derived status is labeled as derived. Establishments with no inspection in over two years are treated as likely closed and excluded from search.