Rag, in Ohio, you can be temporarily licensed for about $35.00. The catch is, you have to be inspected on site, and, you have to prepare all food on site. I would be willing to bet, that out of all folks who do whole hog BBQ, and other BBQ, maybe 10-20% are compliant with local laws. You see, if you have a licensed kitchen, but you are, of course, cooking your hog on site ? Your kitchen is immaterial anyway! Also, you are technically governed by the Board of Health of the County in which you actually do the cooking. Even if you cooked everything in your licensed kitchen, and delivered it to the site, you need a different license designation to "transport" hot and cold food. To make matters even more complex, the laws are "open to interpretation" and that varies from county to county, and even sanitarian to sanitarian( the guy who inspects you!) One county tells me, "you must only be licensed if the guests are being billed a "charge" that includes the meal (like a golf outing or class reunion.) The next county over tells me "if you are charging a ""per plate"" or ""per meal"" cost, then you must be inspected and licensed". This is why I now go the "Personal Chef" route and charge :
Raw Materials
Service Charge (price per hour)
Set-Up fee
This way, the customer is buying the food (through you) and you are supplying a "service" of cooking that food rather than providing "finished meals." Again, every county differs. In one county, you can provide three wash tubs (plastic) to wash rinse and sanitize dishes. Then, they never even ask about the grey water. The next county will require three stainless tubs and a tank to hold grey water. It is a bunch of crap. Be true to yourself. Be VERY CLEAN, and fly under the radar wherever possible! I would call the county in which you live and tell them your plans. The first guy I spoke with three years ago was invaluable in the info he provided. Good Luck! WM