Mobile Retail Food Establishment FAQ

The City and County of Denver does not require a specific type of material to be used, just that the surfaces of the interior are smooth, durable, non-porous, and easily cleanable. Commonly seen materials for mobile units include stainless steel and diamond-plate aluminum.

At minimum, if you are preparing food (i.e. not pre-packaged) you will need a plumbed hand sink equipped with a water heater and water pump, and properly sized clean and gray water tanks. All other equipment is dependent on the type of food you are preparing on the truck and what you intend to store on the unit. All equipment on the unit should be of commercial grade; no residential appliances should be used. 

The Denver Rules and Regulations only allow for one piece of external equipment, either a grill or smoker, to be used for cooking. All other equipment must be attached to or inside of the mobile unit. All food items must be finished and served from the truck itself; you cannot sell food directly from the external equipment.

The City and County of Denver requires that all mobile units have a minimum of a 10-gallon clean water tank on the unit. The gray (or dirty) water tank needs to be 15% larger than the clean water tank.

Being able to wash your hands with hot water and soap is one the most important ways to stop the spread of food-borne illnesses to guests. Any time you are doing food handling on your truck, you will need hot water at a minimum of 85° F to dispense from your hand sink within 30 seconds of activation. 

No. All mobile units must use their properly plumbed hand sinks to always wash hands. A temporary hand washing station is not allowed and would result in the closure of the mobile unit.

A commissary facility is an extension of your food truck. You should use it for: food, chemical, and dry good storage, cooking and cooling of food, obtaining and disposing of water, disposing of grease and trash, and washing dishes and utensils.

The Denver Department of Public Health & Environment does not have the ability to come to your house to ensure that food is made and stored properly to prevent contamination. To help lower the chances of the public from getting sick, we require you to use a licensed facility that are routinely inspected by the health department. 

The City and County of Denver will allow you to use an approved licensed retail food establishment within a 30-minute drive or 30 miles of your operating location. When you submit your affidavit of commissary, we will validate the agreement and verify the location has the capability to act as your commissary.

You should regularly go to your commissary to obtain and dump water, dispose of trash, prep food, and wash dishes. Our Rules and Regulations state that within 24 hours of working, you should go to your commissary. Remember, you need to sign in every time you go to the facility, even if you are there to just get water and stock up. The sign-ins help us during your inspections to prove you use the facility. Sign-ins can be either on a paper log or an electronic system.

Where can I park my food truck?

• On the street: It is allowed. A permit could be required (see below). See below for conditions on location and operations.
• On private property: It is allowed. A permit is required with exceptions. See the "Is a zoning permit required?" section. See the "Is a zoning permit required?" section for conditions on location and operations.
• As part of a larger public event: It varies (see below). Also see the "Can I operate in a park?" and the "What are the zoning rules?" sections. A permit is not required. See below for conditions on location and operations.
• In a public park: See the "Can I operate in a park?" section for allowance if a permit is required and conditions on location and operations.

You can park for vending on any public street, with the following exceptions:

• Not within 20 feet of an intersection when making a sale or attempting to make a sale. Not on any street, alley or public right-of-way within the Central Business District defined by ordinance (see map below).
• Food trucks are prohibited from parking within 300 feet of a public park or parkway unless permission has been granted as part of, or in association with, a festival or contracted event that is permitted by the Denver Department of Parks and Recreation.
• Food trucks are not allowed in residential zone districts.

What rules apply?

• All parking rules must be followed. For example, you cannot double park, park in the wrong street direction, or park at a meter without paying the required fee. If a parking meter is bagged for a special event, you can only park there if authorized by the event.
• If selling ice cream as more than 10% of the gross income from the food truck, you cannot sell on any arterial street, collector street or laned highway.
• You cannot sell to anyone who is standing in the street.
• You cannot place anything - including chairs, tables and signs - on a public sidewalk or in the street.
• You must follow all meter bagging permit or street occupancy permit rules.

On-street parking and permitting

• On-street parking and permitting availability are subject to safety and street operations. All permits are revokable and can be revoked without cause.

• Permits will not be issued for food tucks beyond 14 days from the current date.
• Same-day service is not available. Allow at least one business day to process permitting and bagging services.
• Two on-street spaces must be required if/when a vendor is unable to locate within one permitted space.

Food trucks are not allowed in the Central Business District as shown below in the highlighted area:

Lower Downtown food truck zones

• The Denver Police Department has established dedicated food truck zones in the Lower Downtown area. On Friday through Sunday nights, the zones offer a variety of food options for people on their way to rideshares, public transit or parked vehicles. The zones are located to provide space to enjoy food away from crowded bar entrances and exits. There are three locations (see map below) for these food truck zones. Each location creates spaces to accommodate food truck lines, maintain pedestrian and bike lane flow, avoid blocking parking lot exits and allows space for several food trucks. They are easily accessed while traveling to rideshare pickup locations. More information can be found here.

Food trucks are not allowed within a park or within 300 feet of a park or parkway unless associated with a public event or special occasion. If associated with a public event or special occasion, food trucks must get permission from organizers and get a retail food establishment-mobile license before participating.

A zoning permit could be required to operate a food truck on private property

There are two types of food trucks that can operate on private property under the Denver Zoning Code, differentiated by whether they are serving another event or business or if they are independent. After recent updates to the City and County of Denver zoning code, there is no longer a required 200-foot separation from restaurants and other food trucks. Follow the requirements on this website based on the type of food truck.

Trucks Accessory to a Primary Use (DZC Sec. 11.10.19)

• Zoning Permit required.
• Food trucks may operate as accessory to one of the following primary uses:
  • Any educational use type;
  • Any of the following indoor arts and entertainment uses: art gallery, artist studio, theater, or conference center or event center.
  • Any of the outdoor arts, recreation and entertainment uses;
  • Sports and/or Entertainment Arena or Stadium;
  • Retail sales, service and repair - outdoor.
  • Breweries or distillery; or
  • Any primary use in a campus zone district.
• Operations must occur on the same zone lot as the primary use.
• Hours of operation limited to those of the primary use.

Food Trucks as a Temporary use (DZC Sec. 11.11.14)

There are two types of temporary food trucks:

1. Trucks operate independently from any other land use or special event. A zoning permit is required for these.
   • Districts Zoned for Temporary Food Truck Zoning Permits:
     • All S-CC, S-MX, S-MS, E-RX, E-CC, E-MX, E-MS, G-RX, G-MX, C-MX, C-CCN, industrial, and OS-B zone districts.
     • All downtown zone districts, except the Golden Triangle, Arapahoe Square, and Civic zone districts (D-GT, D-AS, D-CV).
     • Food trucks are not allowed in residential zone districts, unless as a part of an approved special event.
2. Trucks operate as part of a special event.

• The special event must obtain a zoning permit under one of the following temporary uses:

• Bazaar, Carnival, Circus, or Special Event;
• Outdoor Sales, Seasonal (e.g., seasonal farmers markets).
• Amusement/Entertainment - Temporary
• Parking Lot Designated for a Special Event.

• Are there additional conditions or rules for operating a food truck as part of a special event such as a group of food trucks at one location?

• The special event can only last a maximum of 12 consecutive days and there must be at least 90 days between events at the same location.
• If in a residential district, the event sponsor must be a nonprofit or government entity
• Special event operating hours are allowed between 9 a.m. and 11 p.m.
• The special event will need a zoning use permit, but the individual food trucks serving the event do not need separate zoning permits.

Are there any additional zoning rules or conditions that apply to all food trucks?

Operations are prohibited on undeveloped zone lots and zone lots with unoccupied structures or unpaved surfaces.

Operations must be located at least 50 feet from residential zone districts, unless permitted as part of a special event.

Other siting, signage and waste disposal standards are listed in the Denver Zoning Code Section 11.11.14 (www.denvergov.org/zoning).

Applying for a zoning use permit

• Visit www.denvergov.org/commercialzoning to start your zoning use permit application.
• Submit the zoning use permit application by email to zoning.review@denvergov.org or in-person at the "Commercial Zoning" permit counter (201 W. Colfax Ave., second floor).
• For a food truck, the use type is "Retail food establishment-mobile."
• For a special event, the use type is "Bazaar, carnival, circus, or special event."

• Pay fees
• A one-year food truck permit is $50, with $50 annual renewals.
• A special event permit is $10 per event.

No, it is against Zoning rules and regulations to set up seating for customers of mobile units. 

Yes, but you must obtain a business license prior to operating in Denver. The reciprocity bill covers health and fire requirements only, which are a part of Denver’s business license. You can read more about the reciprocity bill in Denver on Denver’s  Licensing and Consumer Protection website and on the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s website. 

Review our Basic Inspection Checklist(PDF, 133KB) for information on what to expect during a routine field inspection.