We love Springwise.com…such a great source of inspiration and ideas for food artisans, home-cooks, home-bakers, and for food entrepreneurs and wannabes. Some months ago (coincidentally, just a few days after “Kitchen Klutz of America” day…June 13th), Springwise spotted BookofCooks in the wild and wrote an awesome piece explaining what we do.

In their most recent newsletter they zoomed in on the booming business of rental kitchens (also known as “Culinary Incubators” and “Commercial Kitchens“). This is a topic that we’ve discussed on our blog before and that many BookofCooks’ users are keen to learn about.


Why are Rental Kitchens so important? If you are a home-cook or home-baker looking to turn your passion for food and cooking into a professional occupation (and hopefully someday, a successful catering or food manufacturing business!) you need to keep in mind that the use of residential kitchens is highly regulated and strictly prohibited in most parts of the US!. Food safety must be your number one concern. So what are your options?:

First, you can consider doing your cooking and baking at your client’s home. If you decide to go with this option, be sure to research and find out what permits/licenses are required by your municipality, county or state –and you may want to consider obtaining liability insurance to protect yourself *and* your client. Tidbit: talk to a culinary professional or visit your nearest culinary school to get some advice, or take the time to visit ServSafe where there is a wealth of information on Food Safety local regulations.

Another option is getting your own kitchen certified. Yes, it is costly, and it can be a hassle. But a lot of people (for the most part, caterers and personal chefs who already have lots of clients/volume) do take the time to modify their kitchens and get them inspected in order to comply with food safety norms. It requires some upfront investment but it can be done, and there are testimonials from folks who’ve had great success. We’re going to write a piece on Certified Residential Kitchens in the coming months so stay tuned.

Lastly, a third option (*best* in our opinion if you are just ‘testing-the-waters’ and don’t want to spend too much time and money until you see if there is some demand for your skills, baked goods, or meals) is to consider setting up base at one these commercial kitchens mentioned on Springwise. Depending on the location, the equipment you need, the number of hours (and time of day) that you want to contract, can cost as low as $15 per hour. Tidbit: during a recession, you may be able to find restaurants and hotels that have underutilized capacity, and therefore may welcome an opportunity to rent their space to you during off-peak hours or outside the busiest day-parts.

As Philly.com points out “Shared-use kitchens are opening across the country, catering to creative chefs tired of the long restaurant hours, home cooks known for their specialties, and bakers looking to get started, all of whom need a commercial food prep space for their artisanal businesses”. Point your browser to this Wikipedia page that is quickly getting populated with information, and links to lots of kitchens across the country. This google maps based website called Culinary Incubator can help you find what’s in your area. Also, be sure to also check out Detra Denay Davis’ website (we blogged about her before on our post “Cottage Food Laws”). Her website contains an extremely comprehensive collection of links and information on the subject of Cottage Food Laws as well as commercial kitchens.

Remember, food safety is first. Good luck and happy cooking / baking!!!