Mobile Food Facilities

A Mobile Food Facility is any vehicle or pushcart used in conjunction with a commissary or other permanent food facility upon which food is sold or distributed at retail in a static location. The Department of Public Health and    San Francisco Fire Department continue to enforce public safety regulations, while location permitting was transferred from the Police Department to Public Works.

Like many major cities across the country, mobile food facilities have become an increasingly significant feature of the streetscape in San Francisco. In order to address this growing trend, the Board of Supervisors adopted ordinance 119-13 (Public Works Code, Article 5.8), regulating Mobile Food Facilities in December of 2010, followed by Public Works guidelines (Public Works Order No. 179,044), approved February 25, 2011.

On July 28, 2013, the Board of Supervisors amended Public Works Code, Article 5.8 to address various location and noticing requirements concerning mobile food facilities accompanied by Public Works guidelines (Order 182,101). The new legislation streamlines the rules and regulations for mobile food vending, making it accessible and affordable to be a legal street-food vendor in San Francisco.

If you have any questions, please email us at mobilefood@sfdpw.org

Call 311 to report a problem or complete a Request for Service online.

Interactive Flowchart

RESEARCH/VISIT OFFICE OF SMALL BUSINESS

• The Office of Small Business functions as the City's central point of information and referral for entrepreneurs and small businesses located in San Francisco, providing one on one case management. Services are available by phone, walk-in and by appointment.

• Read over Public Works Code, Article 5.8 and Public Works Order 182,101.

• Gather information/requirements for the Department of Public Health and San Francisco Fire Department.

• Public Works Fee Schedule (Mobile Food Fee Details)
   

CHOOSING OF LOCATION

When choosing a location, please be aware that the majority of trucks provide service on the passenger side of the vehicle.

Truck/ trailers shall:

Be located on the street in a legal parking space

Not be parked against the flow of traffic

Occupy parallel parking stalls

All Mobile Food Facilities must maintain minimum clearances of:

75’ from existing restaurant primary entrances              8’ from Street Artists

5’ from Curb Returns                                                          6’ Path of Travel

6’ from Street Furniture                                                     7’ from Fire Hydrants

12’ from Bus Zones                                                             12’ from Blue Zones

500' from public middle or junior high schools between 7:00 AM and 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday

1000 feet from most public high schools between 7:00 AM and 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday

See DPW Order 182,101 for more complete list of requirements.

Please note that Department of Public Health requires Restroom Verification (a property owner/business within 200’ of the mobile food facility must consent in writing to use of restroom facilities for your employees).
 

VERIFY REQUIREMENTS WITH

SAMPLE DRAWING

• Provide a diagram of the proposed location showing everything located on the sidewalk/street showing the location of the mobile food facility with distance dimensions. See Sample Drawing. Drawing is not required to be drafted by a computer or to scale but must be with a ruler and legible.

• Represent dimensions between Mobile Food Facility and obstructions including, but not limited to, trees, newspaper racks, bike racks signs, parking meters, hydrants, payphones, lights, SFFD Alarms, etc.

• Dimension the length and width of the Mobile Food Facility. 

• Provide width of the sidewalk. 

• Provide property line, street names, North arrow.
   

APPLICATION SUBMITTAL

• Completed Public Works Mobile Food Facility application

• Two (2) photographs of the permit applicant(s) for ID cards (i.e. passport size)

• Site plan

• A sample menu or itemized list

• Fees: Half of processing, notification and inspection fees. (Refund Policy: No refunds will be issued verbatim per city code Article 5.8 Section 184.83)

PUBLIC NOTIFICATION (NOTICE OF INTENT)

The mandatory public notification comprises of a mailing and posting at the proposed location. The duration of the notification period is 30 days, with a 10-day physical posting at the proposed location within the 30 day notification period to allow the public to submit comments on the application.

After review of the application package and after the requirements of  Public Works Code Article 5.8 and Public Works Order 182,101 are met, an applicant can then proceed to obtain and submit a notification package from a notification service. 

• Signed affidavit 
• Notification area map
• Mailing list depending on hours of operation. Please refer to Public Works Code Article 5.8 and Public Works Order 182,101.
• Mailing labels
• Postage
• Public Works will provide the notices and the envelopes.

• Online: Public Comment Form. Enter the permit application # on the notice.
• E-mail: mobilefood@sfdpw.org. Please reference the permit application # in the subject line.
• Mail: San Francisco Public Works, Bureau of Street-Use & Mapping, ATTN: MOBILE FOOD, 49 South Van Ness Avenue, Suite 300, San Francisco, CA 94103
• Please include the permit number and location, the reasons for your objection and your contact information. 

Notices of Intent List

PUBLIC HEARING

If at least 1 unresolved objection is received, a public hearing will be scheduled to hear the matter and gather facts. After the hearing, the hearing officer will consider the objective facts and make a recommendation to the Director of Public Works. Ultimately, a Director’s Decision will either Approve or Deny the hearing officer’s recommendation.
 

TENTATIVE APPROVAL

Should the Director’s Decision approve the recommendation to approve an application, or if there are no concerns and/or objections, the applicant will be issued a 90-day tentative approval letter to obtain:

• San Francisco Business Registration
• Liability Insurance, listing the City and County of San Francisco, its officers, employees and agents as an additional insured, with a General Liability Policy no less than $2,000,000.
• DMV Registration (for trucks and trailers, not push carts)
• Certificate of Sanitation (Department of Public Health)
• San Francisco Fire Department certificate
• Remit the balance of the fees.
   

FINAL APPROVAL

Once all the items in the tentative approval letter are received, Public Works will review the documents for approval.
 

APPEAL

Final decisions may be appealed to the Board of Appeals within fifteen (15) calendar days from the date of an approved or denied permit application. For further information, please contact the Board of Appeals in person at 49 South Van Ness, Suite 1475 or call (628) 652-1150.
 

REGISTER YOUR BUSINESS

Every person or entity doing business in the City and County of San Francisco must possess a valid Business Registration Certificate from the Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector, as stated in Article 12A of the San Francisco Business and Tax Regulations Code. This code also applies to businesses located outside of San Francisco that perform business transactions or services in San Francisco.
 

SINGLE DAY USE FOR AN EVENT

(Issued as a Temporary Occupancy Permit)

In situations where a mobile food facility is requested for a private catering event, a Temporary Occupancy Permit can be issued. No monetary transactions in the public right-of-way will be permitted under this permit.

It is recommended to apply for this permit a minimum of 5 business days prior to the event date (permit date).  The "No Parking" signs will need to be posted at the site and activated a minimum of 72 hours prior to the permit date.
No exceptions will be granted.

• Application: Temporary Occupancy Permit Application. The permit applicant may be either the event sponsor or food truck owner who will be accepting responsibility for the occupied space and the conditions of the permit. 
   
• Authorization Letter
  • If the food truck vendor is applying for the permit, provide a written authorization letter from the event sponsor/fronting property owner stating the nature of the request, name of the truck(s), date, time, location, and statement that there will be no cash transactions and the mobile food facility will only service event patrons.
     
  • Alternatively, if the event sponsor is applying for the permit, provide a written authorization letter from the food truck vendor stating nature of the request, name of the truck(s), date, time, location, and statement that there will be no cash transactions and the mobile food facility will only service event patrons.
     
• Certificate of Insurance (COI): The applicant for the permit must submit a COI as evidence of general commercial liability coverage and language that complies with Public Works-BSM’s requirements as identified in the Sample COI.
   
• Food Truck Documents: Submit current copies of the following documents for the food truck(s):

INFORMATION LINKS

• Affidavit 
• Board of Appeals 
• Department of Public Health 
• Map
• Public Works Order 182,101 
• Public Works Fee Schedule
• Mobile Food Facilities Fees 
• Fire Department 
• SF Data 
• Notice of Intent (NOI)
• Permit Applications 
• Public Works Code Article 5.8 
• Register Your Business 
• Sample Drawing (pdf)

PERMIT APPLICATIONS (REQUIRED)

• Public Works 
• Fire Department 
• Public Health 
   

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• City Planning (Food Trucks/Open Air Sales – Temporary Use)
• Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA)
• Permit Maps
• Port of San Francisco 
• Recreation and Park

FOR MORE INFORMATION

For more information or clarification on any of the permit requirements, please contact us at:
San Francisco Public Works • Bureau of Street-Use & Mapping 
49 South Van Ness Avenue, Suite 300 • San Francisco, CA 94103 
Phone : (628) 271-2000

San Francisco Public Works • Permit Center 
49 South Van Ness Avenue, Suite 200 • San Francisco, CA 94103 • Map

Processing Hours:
• Please visit https://sf.gov/location/permit-center for operating hours of the Permit Center. 
• Closed on official holidays