Restaurants and food trucks.
Monroe County food-facility health permits run about $165–$600 annually, depending on size or sales volume. Plan review runs about $100. Confirm the exact amount with Monroe County Health Department, Environmental Health Division. Fees are set by Monroe County Code Section 310 (as amended by Ordinance 2025-48). Retail food service establishments are licensed annually with fees tiered by number of employees. 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 Monroe County Health Department, Environmental Health Division. Fees are set by Monroe County Code Section 310 (as amended by Ordinance 2025-48). Retail food service establishments are licensed annually with fees tiered by number of employees. issues the health permit.
What the local foodservice landscape looks like — useful whether you’re opening here or sizing up the competition.
▲ 0.6% change in establishments since 2022 (336 → 338).
The average foodservice wage here is $349 below the Indiana average ($20,148); Indiana has about 13,400 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.
Partial-year establishments opening 1-3 months prior to the licensing year pay 50% of the annual fee; Renewal due by Feb 28/29; late fees (as of 2025 ordinance) run high; late-fee policy revised to 100% of the license for the first month, then additional monthly amounts
Monroe County (Bloomington) inspects under Indiana Retail Food code (410 IAC 7-24); no letter grade. Monthly inspection dashboard posted online.
Mobile food establishment one-time new-establishment fee listed at $165 in the code fee table; plan review $100
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 $290–$850 for Monroe 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.
Check the health-inspection history and violation scores for any food establishment in Monroe County and Indiana. Indiana's state Food Protection portal offers a public inspection search, though many of the 95 local health departments also maintain their own report databases.
Indiana inspection lookup →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 Indiana Plumbing Code (675 IAC 16, based on IPC), food establishments here must control fats, oils & grease (FOG) with a grease interceptor or trap, and typically register with the local sewer/wastewater authority. Grease interceptors are required under the Indiana Plumbing Code, with FOG limits set by the local sewer utility.
Size the interceptor with our grease-trap sizing calculator, compare units in the grease-trap catalog, and confirm the local FOG permit with Monroe County Health Department, Environmental Health Division. Fees are set by Monroe County Code Section 310 (as amended by Ordinance 2025-48). Retail food service establishments are licensed annually with fees tiered by number of employees. (contact above).
Hood fire suppression (Indiana Fire Code (675 IAC 22, based on 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 kitchen hood suppression follows NFPA 96 as adopted in the Indiana Fire Code and is inspected by the local fire authority. See do I need a hood? and the hood CFM calculator.
Backflow prevention: Restaurants must install a testable backflow preventer (typically an RPZ) that is tested annually and reported to the local water utility. A certified backflow assembly (often an RPZ) on the water service, tested annually, is standard — confirm with your water utility.
| Category | Annual fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Grocery / market with deli | Retail Food Service Establishment annual fee by employees: 1-5 $165; 6-10 $330; 11-20 $495; 21+ $600. Multi-Market: 1-3 locations $100; 4-6 locations $200 | Grocery/markets are licensed as retail food service establishments under Monroe County Code Section 310 |
| Bakery / food processing | $150 (prepackaged food establishment only) | One-time new-establishment fee for prepackaged-only operations per MC Code 310 |
| Temporary / seasonal event | $50 per event (Temporary Retail Food); $100 (Seasonal, operating up to 9 months/year) | Partial-year establishments (open 1-3 months prior to licensing year) pay 50% of the annual fee |
| Pushcart / mobile vending | $150 (motorized Mobile Food Service Establishment); $25 (non-motorized, prepackaged ice cream & novelties only); Vending machines of PHF $100 (first ten machines) + per-machine fee over ten | Mobile food establishment one-time new-establishment fee $165 in the code fee table |
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 Monroe 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 →