Restaurants, commercial kitchens, and food trucks.
Ada County food-facility health permits run about $200–$250 annually, depending on size or sales volume. Plan review runs about $100. Confirm the exact amount with Central District Health (CDH) - Environmental Health, Food Program before you budget.
Confirm the authority for your exact address. Some cities run their own health division, and building, planning, fire, sewer/grease and business-license approvals are separate even when Central District Health (CDH) - Environmental Health, Food Program issues the health permit.
What the local foodservice landscape looks like — useful whether you’re opening here or sizing up the competition.
▲ 2.8% change in establishments since 2022 (1,150 → 1,182).
The average foodservice wage here is $2,133 above the Idaho average ($20,937); Idaho has about 4,033 food & drink establishments statewide.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 (NAICS 722, food services & drinking places) — establishments with paid employees. Some small-county payroll figures are withheld by Census for confidentiality.
Per CDH Food Fees page; CDH covers Ada, Boise, Elmore and Valley Counties
Turnaround: Submit at least 30 days before opening
No letter grade; Central District Health posts a searchable food inspection database.
Submit application with floor plan, menu, operational plan, and commissary agreement if used, at least 30 days before opening
Fees/payment and forms are on the department site; application steps vary by concept — see the checklist below.
The government permit & plan-review fees below total roughly $380–$450 for Ada County:
That’s the paperwork only. Add buildout, equipment, deposits and licenses with the cost-to-open calculator. Fees change — confirm current amounts with the department.
Comparison uses the lowest published annual restaurant-permit figure in each county; confirm your exact tier with the department.
U.S. Census 2023 population; County Business Patterns 2022 (NAICS 722).
Plus building, fire, and business-license fees that vary locally — use the cost calculators and the checklist below to budget the full stack.
Under UPC, food establishments here must control fats, oils & grease (FOG) with a grease interceptor or trap, and typically register with the local sewer/wastewater authority. A grease interceptor sized to the state plumbing code is required, with a municipal sewer-authority FOG discharge permit.
Size the interceptor with our grease-trap sizing calculator, compare units in the grease-trap catalog, and confirm the local FOG permit with Central District Health (CDH) - Environmental Health, Food Program (contact above).
Hood fire suppression (IFC): commercial cooking under a Type I hood needs a wet-chemical suppression system to NFPA 96, permitted and inspected by the local fire marshal. Commercial hood suppression must meet NFPA 96 and the state fire code enforced by local fire officials. See do I need a hood? and the hood CFM calculator.
Backflow prevention: An approved backflow preventer with a certified annual test is required by the local water purveyor. A certified backflow assembly (often an RPZ) on the water service, tested annually, is standard — confirm with your water utility.
| Category | Annual fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| temporary/seasonal/special-event | $35.00 (1 day); $45.00 (2-3 days, single event); $80.00 (4+ days or multiple events) | "Temporary Event Food Establishment License." |
| commissary/central kitchen | — | Not a standalone permit; appears only as a mobile-unit sub-classification (Mobile w/ licensed or no commissary $80.00; w/ unlicensed commissary $100.00); Caterers, bakeries, and grocery/market operations fall under the standard "Food Establishment License" ($200.00; $250.00 if >2 licenses on one premise) rather than separate categories |
Health-department plan review looks for specific, code-compliant fixtures. Compare spec-filtered options, then confirm counts and sizes with your local requirements. See the full list in what equipment a commercial kitchen requires.
Permit costs and rules change at the county line — compare Ada County with its neighbors.
This is a typical sequence — confirm the exact sequence with your authority having jurisdiction.
Official plan-check requirements: plan-check guide →