My kitchen is legit!

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Permalink Reply by Windy Jimenez on April 24, 2011 at 11:02am

Congrats!

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Permalink Reply by Amber on April 25, 2011 at 6:03pm

Hi Renay! Your kitchen is beautiful! I've just recently been putting a lot of thought into starting up my own home bakery business by converting my garage into a legit kitchen. I've had no luck with in finding any information on the rules and regulations that are required to do so. I've contacted the health department, but they gave me absolutely no information other than directing me to go to my city hall. I haven't had time to do this yet though. How did you go about finding out what's required to get this up and going? Any advice?

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Permalink Reply by Theresa Happe on April 26, 2011 at 5:08pm

Nice. I wish I had all that space. Good luck and may it help you prosper!

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Permalink Reply by christine m simpkin on April 26, 2011 at 8:22pm

That's Great News!!!! Congrats!! 

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Permalink Reply by Carmen F. Alvarez on April 30, 2011 at 8:04pm

Congratulations.  Your kitchen looks great.  How many square feet is it out of curiousity?

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Permalink Reply by Sweet Cakery (Midori) on June 23, 2011 at 9:51am

Congratulations!

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Permalink Reply by Renay Zamora on June 23, 2011 at 10:36am

Thanks all!

Amber, I called my State Department of Health and Regulations dept. and asked them for the state regulations for bakeries and/or kitchens. I also talked to a few local business owners - caterers, local eateries, etc - to see what they did. I got my business license and then I did the following:

I filed paperwork with the codes dept. in my city for a change of occupancy permit.
I filed paperwork with the water and sewage depart, where they told me I needed a grease trap and where to find one, as well as how to schedule an inspection.
I installed a three compartment sink and got my work table and shelving situated.
I contacted my local county health department when I was ready for my inspection. The kitchen already had a sink, which is my hand sink, and the building has a full and half bath. The full bath counts as my mop sink and the half bath is for visitors. There were a few things I didn't know about, such as they require the building to have self-closing doors, but that was the only thing that the inspector counted off of my final inspection.

Your local codes and the water and sewage dept. are most likely at your local city hall. And you'll have to look up the contact number for your State Dept. of Health & Regs. Interestingly, in my state, the health inspections are done on a county level, not state. So check with your county's health dept. as to what their requirements might be, as well.

Just ask lots of questions! Don't be afraid to sound like you have no idea about what you're doing. I was clueless but I just kept asking.

Best to you!

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Permalink Reply by Sara Rylander on July 4, 2011 at 9:01pm

Renay, your kitchen is FABULOUS! I'm in Georgia, and we're seriously considering adding a second kitchen to our next house so I can have a home bakery. I've already been in contact with the state and county and they've been great. The only thing they can't tell me is the cost to convert a garage or part of a basement. If you don't mind sharing, I'd LOVE to know roughly what your kitchen cost so I have a ballpark idea. Is it a converted garage? Or was the kitchen already in your home? I've been looking around at houses and I've been surprised to see how many homes already have second kitchens in the basement that could easily be converted. It's just been hard for me to get a good grasp on the prices for the commercial sinks, tables, etc.
Anyway, if you don't want to share, no biggie. Just wondering how big my "cake egg" needs to be. :) Thanks!

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Permalink Reply by Jen Howard on July 5, 2011 at 9:39am

That looks great!

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Permalink Reply by Tonia Richardson on July 5, 2011 at 10:10am

Looks great Renay.  Congrat.

 

(After 49 years you are the first Renay that I have seen their name spelt that way except for me.  Renay is my middle name.)

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