How It Works
Home kitchens, made safe and simple
The Home Kitchen Concept
Home kitchens let talented cooks sell the food they make in their own homes directly to neighbors — no restaurant required. Chilimo is the marketplace that connects them, handling discovery, ordering, and payments so chefs can focus on cooking.
Chefs List Their Dishes
Home cooks create a kitchen profile, photograph their dishes, and set their prices and pickup times. Our AI tools help write dish descriptions and suggest pricing.
Foodies Discover & Order
Browse home kitchens near you on the map or by cuisine. Add dishes to your cart, schedule a pickup time, and pay securely through Chilimo.
Pickup & Enjoy
When your order is ready, the chef notifies you. Head over at your scheduled pickup time and enjoy freshly made, home-cooked food.
California MEHKO Law
California's Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation (MEHKO) law (AB 626) allows home cooks to prepare and sell meals — including hot food — directly from their home kitchen, without a commercial kitchen license. A MEHKO permit is issued by the county environmental health department and lets you legally operate a home kitchen restaurant on Chilimo.
County Compliance
MEHKO permits are available in a growing number of California counties. Here are two where Chilimo is already active — plus more coming soon:
Santa Clara County
Santa Clara County supports MEHKO permits under AB 626, allowing home cooks to sell hot meals directly to consumers. Chefs register with the county environmental health department and must comply with annual sales limits, kitchen inspections, and food handler certification requirements.
Santa Clara County Permit Info →San Mateo County
San Mateo County recognizes Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operations under state law. Home-based food producers can obtain a MEHKO permit to sell directly to consumers at their home, at farmers markets, or through platforms like Chilimo, within state-mandated product and revenue guidelines.
San Mateo County Permit Info →Chilimo's Role
Chilimo is a marketplace — we provide the technology platform that connects home chefs with food lovers. We help chefs manage their menus, accept orders, and receive payments. We help foodies discover great home-cooked food nearby and order with confidence. Compliance with local MEHKO laws is the responsibility of each individual chef, and we encourage all chefs to obtain the appropriate permits before selling food.
Getting Started as a Chef
Create your kitchen profile
Sign up on Chilimo, register your kitchen, and tell us about yourself and your cooking style.
Add your dishes
Photograph your food, describe your dishes, and set your prices. Our AI tools make it fast and easy.
Get verified by the Chilimo admin team
Our team reviews your profile and dishes to make sure everything meets our quality and safety standards before you go live.
Apply for your MEHKO permit
Apply for a Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation permit from your county health department. Use mehko.help/dashboard to start your application — it's required before selling food on Chilimo.
Start receiving orders
Go live on the map and start getting orders from foodies in your neighborhood.
Ready to get started?
Join Chilimo as a chef or find great home-cooked food near you.