Starting a catering business

[Bill Gailey]

In the past month I have been involved in quite a few cooks for functions of various sizes from 50 people to 1000 people. I have simply cooked, not acted as a caterer. I know a lot of you guys and gals do catering as a business so I am wondering if you would mind sharing your knowledge and experience in starting a catering biz in Michigan.

My daughter is a chef and we have been discussing the possibility for some time. Not planning on giving up the day job but am interested in becoming legal so I don't get fined for doing something stupid.

All info will be greatly appreciated.

[sfisch]

Bill,
I think the Oakland Co. Health Department has some info on requirements, licensing, etc.
on their website. Others like Bubba can really help you out with that info too.

Scott

[spydermike72]

Well you have to determine what type of caterer you are going to be - On-Site or just drop off/pickup. That will determine what type of facility you will need. Like Scott says start with the HD. You are also going to need to look into getting a price on Liability insurance, when I was catering I had a $1 Million dollar Umbrella policy and a $10K policy on my equipment, it ran about $300.00 per year. However they will base that on income projections the first year, the next year/s they are going to want to see how much you make. Auto-Owners seemed to be the cheapest for me.

Mod Note- I am going to move this to the Catering Forum :D :D

[Bbq Bubba]

If all your going to do is backyard catering Bill, get insured and skip the H.D.
If your going to vend to a public crowd then H.D. should be your first stop.

[BealeStreetWayne]

Based on what little bit I know about Michigan:

I think if you want to be totally legal and you plan on doing full service on-site catering you will need HD approval in some form (ie a license). If you're going to precook / prepare food (marinade, inject, dry rub, cole slaw, potato salad, veggie tray, ect) prior to arrival on-site, you will most likely be required to use a HD approved kitchen to get the license. Your home kitchen, no matter how nice it is, will not get approved. If you don't have a restaurant, "renting" kitchen time from a local church or other approved establishment is one way many caterers achieve this requirement.

If you choose not to get a license and only do "private party" business HD probably won't catch up with you. There are hundreds of people illegally catering in Michigan and your chances of getting caught are low. That is unless you actually get paid to serve the food and have a "real or perceived" food bourne illness problem at an event that gets reported....then watch out for some fun. If you're going to do "commercial" business where you accept some type of contract or purchase order (Company outings, charity events, ect) you will most likely be contractually required to be properly licensed (read the fine print). Again, if your not meeting the terms of your contract what are the odds of getting caught - probably low. What is the penalty of getting caught......?

As for insurance, your insurance policy may require you to be "properly" licensed or they may not honor a claim against YOU.

My suggestion is if you plan on having a catering "business", you should contact your local health department, find out who your inspector is, and find out what they require. Believe it or not these people can be helpful. They are very big on you having Serve Safe certification - your daughter being a chef is probaly already "certified" or at least has the proper knowledge. You may not like doing what your inspector tells you, but at least you will know the law and then you can choose wether or not to break it.

Sounds complicated and costly, but you should know the facts before you put yourself at risk.

[Bill Gailey]

Thanks Wayne for the advice. Amy does have the Serve Safe certification but the kitchen situation will have to be resolved. I do plan on getting licensed if I am going to pursue this. Over 40 years in business for myself, I don't want to throw that out the window over trying to skip a license. If I can't do it legally and profitably then I don't see much point in doing it.

[Bbq Bubba]

OK, maybe you misunderstood me.
I'm not saying skip the H.D. as in cook illegal, i'm saying for the type of cooking it sounds like you want to pursue, there is no license available from the HD.
Unless your planning on cooking and serving food at say a farmers mkt, a festival or anywhere your going to serve to the general public, all you need to do is become properly insured.
A ServSafe cert is ONLY required if you are managing or in the position to oversee others.

Good luck Bill!
It will be amusing when you, me, Tommy and others start bidding on the same jobs. :D