Many people start an espresso operation and don't realize how closely they
are needing to work with the health department to open their shop.
Your local County Health Department should have an extensive packet of
information in regards to what is required to pass their inspections, but
not all do, it's necessary to address regardless, afterall, if you decide
to get out of the coffee service world, a cart that is up to code nationwide
"expept a few" sells much better then something that was built under slack
conditions. In King and Pierce county (located next to each other),
for example when starting an espresso cart, it not only covers the requirements,
but even includes example diagrams of what a generic cart layout will look
like. It's something that's going to give you a great reference in
order to assemble our own written proposal necessary to submit to them
in most cases nationwide. If you are just starting out, your first phone
call should be to your local County Health Department, ask them for what
ever package relevant to what you are trying to open, with some of them,
they will refer you to the local plumbing authorities, with others, they
will be very hands on themselves so will require their approval prior to
opening shop.
You may think, well, these guys have
it all in their corner and I will not bore readers with the necessity for
sanitation standards, luckily this end of the traditional governmentally
produced establishments keeps an open mind, you should think more along
a mode of thought with what you are presenting to them rather then the
final, this has to include this at all times and if it's not that way the
world ends :) In special circumstances, as long as the request is
sound, or the requester simply needs a little slack while they establish
their new business, they will make accommodations and variances.
You as a business owner should do your best not as much just working within
them, but surpassing them, I'm sure all of you do NOT want to make your
clients sick, much less have a dirty looking retail store front, it's just
bad business when it all comes down to it and if you have not established
a positive, working relationship with your local health department, it
needs to be addressed, even if it means bringing in an outside party to
give new perspective.
What they are looking for "generally"
is pretty much common sense, I'll cover a few of these:
Clean ability, The ability
to clean the surfaces that come in contact with food, this is imperative,
this is why surfacing the area with something that is designed to withstand
it, unfinished plywood will not pass code. In a drive through for
example, all cabinets need a back splash to repel liquids rushing over
the edges of the counters. In your local Cafe, you'll typically have
a combination of those as well as sneeze guards.
Facilities, If you are
opening any coffee related operation it will require milk storage, this
is where and why the regs and procedures come into play, milk spoils quickly,
they will require a commissary. A commissary is a 3 compartment sink
and a mop sink, all you need is access to them if you are running an espresso
car . The reasoning behind this is you need to wash, rinse and sanitize
your utensils in order to sterilize them at the end of the day.
They test the temperature of the
water, so you need to have a water heater and pump built into it to get
it up to par. Typically, under counter sinks in a coffee kiosk require
12" from the bottom of the counter to the top of the sink to allow for
ample ease of use. It's all about what you are trying to run mainly, but
many codes intertwine, and especially in the espresso industry, closely.
Equipment is the final deciding
factor. In general, home equipment simply doesn't handle the job
on a commercial basis, the same thing goes with the requirements along
that end. The refrigeration for example, in a catering cart, you
can get away with using a home model, but in a commercial cart, one that
has to keep the same temperature all day every day, only a commercial model
is allowed.
Written/Visual Inspection,
you'll be submitting a set of plans and then schedule an on hands inspection;
On average it's a $450.00 process expense wise, This in a nutshell covers
the common issues many people have run into when starting up their own
espresso business, so, taking this info as well as your own local Counties
packet, you have everything you need to insure everything is safe and passes
all inspections. |
- Espresso 
