Craving burgers, pizza, pasta, bagels, or chicken wings? Tahoe has it all. But if you're craving fesenjan with tahdig (you know who you are), fill up your gas tank or charge your car because I'm heading to Sacramento and you can come visit me in my kitchen, where I'm cooking up fesenjan along with other Persian classics.
Under current law, you can come and eat at my house without a license. You can pay me to be your “chef for hire” and make the exact same food in your kitchen, as long as you have a commercial license. However, it is currently illegal for me to be paid for most of the food I cook at home.
I don't plan on working in the restaurant business full time, and I don't think there's a big enough market for a Persian restaurant in South Lake Tahoe, but it's not illegal to run an occasional restaurant on the side or to host lavish banquets for small groups. The health risks are the same whether you host a free private dinner party for friends or a paying crowd.
In 2018, California passed AB 626 (later amended by AB 1325), a law that allows counties to license Small Enterprise Home Kitchen Operations (MEHKOs), small food businesses run by residents from their home kitchens, limited to 90 meals per week and $100,000 in annual revenue. All MEHKOs are subject to various restrictions, including obtaining a permit from the county, allowing inspections of their home kitchens, and obtaining food protection manager certification.
However, these benefits are not yet available in El Dorado County because the Board of Supervisors has not taken action to approve MEHKO. Additionally, the Department of Environmental Services continues to delay action, citing health concerns due to delayed testing. However, many other counties, large and small, have already decided to implement MEHKO for years and have demonstrated that it can be implemented safely and reliably.
I call on Supervisor Brooke Lane and my colleagues, including Environmental Management Director Jeffrey Warren, to take action. It's past time to pass a resolution to opt in to AB 626 and start allowing MEHKOs in our communities. Let's support culinary entrepreneurship, expand dining options for residents and tourists, and provide another legal avenue for residents to make a little extra money. In the meantime, if you want to eat gème or tâché en morgue in a super hip place in town, contact me. I know the place. The chef is a bit opinionated, but the food is fantastic.
