Restaurants, commercial kitchens, and food trucks.
Tennessee Department of Health - Sumner County Health Department, Environmental Health (state-administered; Sumner is not a contract/metro county) · department site →
Fees change often — always confirm the current amount with the department before you budget.
Sumner County food-facility health permits run about $210–$360 annually, depending on size or sales volume. Confirm the exact amount with Tennessee Department of Health - Sumner County Health Department, Environmental Health (state-administered; Sumner is not a contract/metro county) 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 Tennessee Department of Health - Sumner County Health Department, Environmental Health (state-administered; Sumner is not a contract/metro county) issues the health permit.
The restaurant market in Sumner County
What the local foodservice landscape looks like — useful whether you’re opening here or sizing up the competition.
316
food & drink establishments
6,478
industry jobs
$148M
annual payroll
$22,865
avg wage / worker
121 full-service restaurants
131 limited-service & fast food
42 snack & coffee bars
9 mobile food & trucks
▲ 3.3% change in establishments since 2022 (306 → 316).
The average foodservice wage here is $353 below the Tennessee average ($23,218); Tennessee has about 13,712 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.
Last verified: 2026-08-17 — we re-confirmed the serving authority, its contact, and that the fees below match the current published schedule. Fee schedules may carry an earlier effective date (shown per fee); local ordinances & amendments aren’t individually reviewed, so confirm current rules with the authority having jurisdiction.See something out of date? Report an update →
Restaurant / food-facility permit
Food Service Establishment permit (Tennessee Food Safety Act; T.C.A. 68-14-713)
$210/yr (0-50 seats)
$360/yr (51+ seats)
Fees are STATE-SET by statute (T.C.A; 68-14-713) and applied uniformly by the TN Dept; of Health in state-administered counties like Sumner; Permit year is July 1-June 30. Delinquency (30+ days) adds a penalty of one-half the permit fee; Only Davidson, Hamilton, Knox, Madison and Shelby operate as contract counties with their own schedules; Sumner uses the state fees
Plan review — required
Tennessee requires plan review of new construction/extensive remodeling by the Dept
of Health, but T.C.A
68-14-713 does not itemize a separate plan-review fee and no separate dollar amount is published for Sumner County
Tennessee 0–100 inspection score; report posted prominently and searchable in the state inspection portal.
Food truck / mobile permit
Mobile food unit permit (permitted as a food service establishment)
the statutory fee schedule (T.C.A
68-14-713) does not itemize a mobile/food-truck fee
mobile units are permitted as food service establishments, which would fall under the 0-50 seat rate of $210/yr
No mobile-specific figure is published
Mobile units operate from a permitted commissary/base of operation; Fee treated as the base food service establishment permit; the $210 (0-50 seats) figure is the applicable published statutory amount but is not explicitly labeled 'mobile.'
Fees/payment and forms are on the department site; application steps vary by concept — see the checklist below.
What it costs in permit fees to open here
The government permit & plan-review fees below total roughly $420–$570 for Sumner County:
$210–$360 — food-facility permit
$210 — food-truck permit
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.
Look up a restaurant’s inspection score
Check the health-inspection history and violation scores for any food establishment in Sumner County and Tennessee. The Tennessee Department of Health operates a statewide portal where food service establishment inspection scores can be searched by name, county, or date.
At about $210/year, Sumner County’s restaurant health permit is above the Tennessee median ($100) and above the U.S. median ($125) — higher than about 78% of U.S. counties.
Ranked 92nd-lowest of 94 Tennessee counties by permit cost.
Comparison uses the lowest published annual restaurant-permit figure in each county; confirm your exact tier with the department.
Local food-service market
About 306 food & drinking establishments serve ~207,994 residents in Sumner County — one per ~680 residents, denser than the Tennessee average (one per ~706).
U.S. Census 2023 population; County Business Patterns 2022 (NAICS 722).
Budget the permit stack
Start with ~$210 annual health permit.
Plus building, fire, and business-license fees that vary locally — use the cost calculators and the checklist below to budget the full stack.
Grease trap & FOG requirements
Under International Plumbing Code (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. Restaurants must install an approved grease interceptor under the state-adopted plumbing code, with discharge governed by the local sewer authority's FOG program.
Size the interceptor with our grease-trap sizing calculator, compare units in the grease-trap catalog, and confirm the local FOG permit with Tennessee Department of Health - Sumner County Health Department, Environmental Health (state-administered; Sumner is not a contract/metro county) (contact above).
Fire suppression & backflow
Hood fire suppression (International Fire Code (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 must meet NFPA 96 and the state-adopted International Fire Code, enforced by the State Fire Marshal's Office and local fire officials. See do I need a hood? and the hood CFM calculator.
Backflow prevention: Backflow prevention assemblies (typically an RPZ) require annual testing by a certified tester through the local water 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.
Watch out for
Administering authority: the STATE (TN Dept; of Health) runs Sumner County's environmental health; fees are set by state statute, not the county; Nashville metro; county seat Gallatin
Statutory fee schedule (T.C.A; 68-14-713): standard 0-50 seats $210, 51+ seats $360; school food service $80; auxiliary food service $100; child care center food service $50 (0-50 seats)/$80 (51+); temporary food service establishment $30; farmers market food unit $300
Retail grocery/food stores in Tennessee are regulated separately by the TN Dept; of Agriculture, not the Dept; of Health
Other food-service permits in this jurisdiction
Category
Annual fee
Notes
Temporary / seasonal event
$30 (Temporary Food Service Establishment)
State-set fee, T.C.A; 68-14-713, administered by TN Dept; of Health in Sumner County
Commissary / central preparation kitchen
$100 (Auxiliary food service operation)
Auxiliary/support food operations are set at $100 by T.C.A; 68-14-713. Farmers market food units are $300; school food service $80
Equipment your Sumner County plan review will check
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.
$210/yr (0-50 seats); $360/yr (51+ seats) These are annual health-permit fees, usually tiered by seating or size; confirm your exact category with the department.
Is plan review required in Sumner County?
Yes — plan review is required before you build or remodel a food facility. Typical fees: Tennessee requires plan review of new construction/extensive remodeling by the Dept; of Health, but T.C.A; 68-14-713 does not itemize a separate plan-review fee and no separate dollar amount is published for Sumner County
Do I need a commissary for a food truck in Sumner County?
In most cases, yes — most mobile units must operate from an approved commissary; confirm exemptions with the department. Mobile units operate from a permitted commissary/base of operation; Fee treated as the base food service establishment permit; the $210 (0-50 seats) figure is the applicable published statutory amount but is not explicitly labeled 'mobile.'
Who issues food permits in Sumner County?
Food permits here are issued by Tennessee Department of Health - Sumner County Health Department, Environmental Health (state-administered; Sumner is not a contract/metro county). See the department site for current details.
Are city building and fire approvals separate?
Yes — building, plumbing, mechanical and fire approvals are always separate from the health permit and are often handled by different offices.