Restaurants, commercial kitchens, and food trucks.
Pasco County food-facility health permits run about $50–$357 annually, depending on size or sales volume. Plan review runs about $50. Confirm the exact amount with Florida DBPR, Division of Hotels & Restaurants (restaurants/food service - statewide); FDACS Division of Food Safety (groceries, bakeries, food processing, packaged-food mobile units); Florida DOH-Pasco County Health Department (institutional/limited food service) 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 Florida DBPR, Division of Hotels & Restaurants (restaurants/food service - statewide); FDACS Division of Food Safety (groceries, bakeries, food processing, packaged-food mobile units); Florida DOH-Pasco County Health Department (institutional/limited food service) issues the health permit.
What the local foodservice landscape looks like — useful whether you’re opening here or sizing up the competition.
▲ 5.4% change in establishments since 2022 (833 → 878).
The average foodservice wage here is $4,142 below the Florida average ($25,544); Florida has about 44,608 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.
State-administered by DBPR H&R; the fee schedule is identical in all Florida counties (Pasco included); License year runs June 1; May 31 and is annual; Pasco-specific requirements are separate: a Pasco County Local Business Tax Receipt (Tax Collector) plus city business tax where applicable, and county zoning/fire approval
State DBPR Division of Hotels & Restaurants inspects; outcome is met-standards / warning / emergency closure with violations listed, no letter grade; searchable statewide online database.
DBPR licenses MFDVs that serve prepared food; each license is tied to a specific vehicle and the unit must report to an approved commissary; Mobile units selling only packaged/grocery-type items are instead permitted by FDACS (Mobile Vendor $300); A Pasco local business tax receipt and any city vending rules also apply
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 $110–$754 for Pasco 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 Pasco County and Florida. Florida DBPR Division of Hotels and Restaurants runs a statewide restaurant inspection report search.
Florida 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 Florida Building Code, Plumbing, 8th Edition (2023), 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 Florida Building Code Plumbing, with FOG permits from the local utility/sewer authority.
Size the interceptor with our grease-trap sizing calculator, compare units in the grease-trap catalog, and confirm the local FOG permit with Florida DBPR, Division of Hotels & Restaurants (restaurants/food service - statewide); FDACS Division of Food Safety (groceries, bakeries, food processing, packaged-food mobile units); Florida DOH-Pasco County Health Department (institutional/limited food service) (contact above).
Hood fire suppression (Florida Fire Prevention Code, 8th Edition (NFPA 1 & NFPA 101, 2021)): commercial cooking under a Type I hood needs a wet-chemical suppression system to NFPA 96, permitted and inspected by the local fire marshal. Kitchen hood suppression follows NFPA 96 under the Florida Fire Prevention Code, enforced by the local fire marshal. See do I need a hood? and the hood CFM calculator.
Backflow prevention: Annual RPZ backflow testing is required by the local utility's cross-connection control program. 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 | $263/yr ($136.50 half-year); DBPR Caterer license | Caterers are licensed by DBPR H&R statewide; same amount in every Florida county |
| Commissary / central preparation kitchen | not a separately priced DBPR category; a commissary is licensed as a nonseating Public Food Service Establishment ($242/yr) and serves as the base/report point for mobile food dispensing vehicles | DBPR treats the commissary as a food service establishment (nonseating tier) |
| Bakery / food processing | Retail Bakery $355; Retail Bakery with food service $440; Wholesale Bakery $465 (FDACS Rule 5K-4.020) | Bakeries and food processing are permitted by FDACS Division of Food Safety, NOT DBPR; a bakery with sit-down service may also need a DBPR seating license |
| Bar / limited food service | By seats (DBPR): Nonseating $242; 1-49 seats $262; 50-149 $273 (etc.) | A bar that serves food is a DBPR Public Food Service Establishment priced by seating; a bar serving only alcohol is licensed by DBPR Division of Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco, not H&R |
| Grocery / market with deli | Grocery Store $465; Supermarket $500 (FDACS Rule 5K-4.020); statutory cap $650 (Ch; 500.12, F.S.) | Groceries/markets are permitted by FDACS; an in-store deli/seating food-service area additionally requires a DBPR seating license |
| Temporary / seasonal event | $91 (1-3 day event); $105 (4-30 day event); $456 annual temporary food service vendor (DBPR) | Temporary food service events are licensed by DBPR H&R (tied to the event/vendor) |
| Pushcart / mobile vending | $347/yr ($178.50 half-year) + $50 application; DBPR Mobile Food Dispensing Vehicle / hot dog cart; Packaged-food-only carts: FDACS Mobile Vendor $300 | Prepared-food carts/trucks = DBPR MFDV; carts selling only packaged/grocery items = FDACS |
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 Pasco 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 →