Restaurants, commercial kitchens, and food trucks.
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 Detroit Health Department — Food Safety Unit (100 Mack Ave., Ste. 311) issues the health permit.
Cities with their own health department: Detroit. Food businesses inside these cities apply to the city health department (with its own fees and rules), not Wayne County. Confirm which authority covers your exact address.
What the local foodservice landscape looks like — useful whether you’re opening here or sizing up the competition.
▲ 2.9% change in establishments since 2022 (3,410 → 3,509).
The average foodservice wage here is $1,146 above the Michigan average ($22,060); Michigan has about 19,760 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.
Detroit publishes a 2026-2027 Food Service License Fee Schedule (PDF) but detroitmi.gov blocks automated retrieval (HTTP 403 / bot wall); Fee schedule PDF: https://detroitmi.gov/sites/detroitmi.localhost/files/2026-02/2026-2027-Fee-Schedule_0.pdf
Detroit/Wayne County health depts inspect under the Michigan Food Law/FDA Food Code; no letter grade, reports posted online (MiSafe).
Mobile/temporary/fixed food facilities all must be licensed before operating; food trucks also need a Detroit business license plate from the Business License Center; Exact mobile license fee is in the blocked 2026-2027 fee schedule PDF
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 $55–$575 for Wayne 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 Wayne County and Michigan. MDARD's MiSafe portal lets the public search state food inspection reports, with reports available from April 2022 forward.
Michigan inspection lookup →U.S. Census 2023 population; County Business Patterns 2022 (NAICS 722).
A code-compliant kitchen in Wayne County needs more than the health permit — these approvals are handled by separate offices. Confirm current requirements with each.
| Building / plans | City of Detroit BSEED - Permits & Plan Review (principal city) · 313-224-2372 |
| Fire marshal | Detroit Fire Department - Fire Marshal Division / Fire Prevention · 313-596-2961 |
| Zoning / planning | City of Detroit BSEED - Zoning Division / Board of Zoning Appeals · 313-224-2372 |
| Sewer / grease | Detroit Water & Sewerage Dept. (DWSD) - Industrial Waste Control / Fats, Oil & Grease (FOG) |
| Business license | City of Detroit BSEED - Business License Center · 313-224-3178 |
Under Michigan Plumbing Code (based on 2021 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 Michigan Plumbing Code, with FOG limits set by the local wastewater utility.
Size the interceptor with our grease-trap sizing calculator, compare units in the grease-trap catalog, and confirm the local FOG permit with Detroit Health Department — Food Safety Unit (100 Mack Ave., Ste. 311) (contact above).
Hood fire suppression (Michigan Fire Code (based on 2021 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 Michigan Fire Code, enforced by the Bureau of Fire Services and local fire departments. 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 |
|---|---|---|
| temporary/seasonal/special-event | $250 | Temporary Food Establishment (fixed location, not to exceed 14 consecutive days); fee doubles if application received 4 or fewer days before event |
| commissary/central kitchen | — | Required for mobile food establishments (must return for servicing at least every 24 hours); Fee not separately published |
| caterer | — | No separate catering license; a caterer is licensed as a Food Service (restaurant) and must meet restaurant requirements |
| market/grocery with deli | — | Grocery/retail food stores are licensed by the state (MDARD), not the Detroit Health Department |
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 Wayne 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 →