Restaurants and food trucks.
Denver County food-facility health permits run about $25 annually. Plan review runs about $150–$155. Confirm the exact amount with Denver Department of Public Health & Environment (DDPHE) - Public Health Investigations; retail food licenses issued by Dept of Excise & Licenses 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 Denver Department of Public Health & Environment (DDPHE) - Public Health Investigations; retail food licenses issued by Dept of Excise & Licenses issues the health permit.
What the local foodservice landscape looks like — useful whether you’re opening here or sizing up the competition.
▼ 0.3% change in establishments since 2022 (2,325 → 2,319).
The average foodservice wage here is $6,806 above the Colorado average ($28,457); Colorado has about 13,675 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.
Colorado SB 25-285 increased state retail food establishment fees ~25% in 2026. Denver operators pay a stacked set of fees (health license + fire + zoning)
No letter grades; Denver posts a searchable restaurant health inspection database online.
HB25-1295 reciprocity effective Jan 2026 lets state-licensed (CDPHE) trucks operate statewide outside Denver, but Denver still requires its own stacked local licensing
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 $275–$655 for Denver 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.
A code-compliant kitchen in Denver County needs more than the health permit — these approvals are handled by separate offices. Confirm current requirements with each.
| Building / plans | Denver Community Planning & Development (CPD) - Building Permits · 720-865-2705 |
| Fire marshal | Denver Fire Department - Fire Prevention Division · 720-913-3474 |
| Zoning / planning | Denver Community Planning & Development (CPD) - Zoning Permits · 720-865-2705 |
| Sewer / grease | Denver Dept of Transportation & Infrastructure (DOTI) - Wastewater Management / Grease Interceptor (SUDP) permits |
| Business license | Denver Dept of Excise & Licenses - Retail Food Establishment License |
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 adopted 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 Denver Department of Public Health & Environment (DDPHE) - Public Health Investigations; retail food licenses issued by Dept of Excise & Licenses (contact above).
Hood fire suppression: commercial cooking under a Type I hood needs a wet-chemical suppression system to NFPA 96, permitted and inspected by the local fire marshal. Type I hood fire suppression must meet NFPA 96 and the fire code adopted by the local fire authority. 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 |
|---|---|---|
| caterer | $481 / $538 / $581 | Restaurants & Caterers by seating capacity (0-100 / 101-200 / over 200), 2026 Denver fee schedule under CO SB25-285 |
| market/grocery with deli | $469 (<15,001 sqft) / $894 (>15,000 sqft) | Grocery Store with Deli; grocery without deli $244 / $441 |
| pushcart/limited operation | $338-$481 | Mobile Full Service $481, Prepackaged $338; Limited Food Service Establishment $338 |
| food processing/wholesale | — | Not a Denver retail-food category |
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 Denver 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 →