LOS ANGELES — Applications are now open for LA County residents interested in operating a mini-restaurant from their homes, officials announced Monday.

Under the county's Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation, or MEHKO, program, county residents are able to operate food facilities from their homes or other private cooking spaces.

What You Need To Know

  • LA County residents interested in operating a mini-restaurant from their home can fill out an application form

  • The county's Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation program would allow residents to operate food facilities from their homes

  • Applications are available at the County of Los Angeles Public Health website,  http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/eh/business/microenterprise-home-kitchen-operation.htm

Applications are available here.

Permits are expected to be given to applicants starting Nov. 1. Once permitted, a resident will be able to store, handle, prepare and serve food at their homes, as allowed by the California Health and Safety Code.

"MEHKOs represent an important economic vehicle for entrepreneurial county residents — especially women, immigrants, and communities of color -- to create new opportunities in the formal economy," Supervisor Hilda L. Solis said in a statement.

In May, the County Board of Supervisors approved an ordinance establishing its MEHKO program. It requires operators of such businesses to pay an application fee of $597, along with an annual health permit fee of $347, covering the costs of annual inspections and enforcement actions. The ordinance also sets a cap on gross annual sales of $100,000, with meals limited to 30 per day or 90 per week.

The board also approved a $600,000 subsidy program that will offer up to 1,000 eligible applicants a one-time 100% subsidy on the initial application fee of $597. The eligibility will be limited to new applicant MEHKOs with annual net revenues less than $50,000.

The ordinance will affect businesses across the county, except for those in Long Beach, Pasadena and Vernon, which are overseen by those cities' individual health departments.

Under the ordinance, a MEHKO can also be approved to serve as a commissary for up to two food carts, or Compact Mobile Food Operations. In such cases, the kitchens will be limited to 80 meals per day and no more than 200 meals per week. The gross sales for a MEHKO operating as a commissary will be $150,000.

"Our Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operations ordinance allows L.A. County to align with the state in creating a pathway for unregulated chefs to become permitted and builds on our efforts to provide guardrails that protect residents and brick and mortar businesses, while helping thousands of sidewalk vendors and home cooks benefit from our local economy," Supervisor Holly Mitchell said in a statement.

The Department of Public Health's Environmental Health Division will authorize permits and conduct annual inspections and complaint-based investigations.

"Through the growth of MEHKOs, we strive to empower food business owners with the skill and tools necessary to increase the knowledge of food safety practices when serving the public," Barbara Ferrer, director of DPH, said in a statement.