Alameda County officials said Monday they will temporarily stop shutting down pop-up restaurants, as long as they follow food safety laws, while county officials figure out a strategy for issuing permits for the restaurants.
Alameda County Board of Supervisors President Wilma Chan said at a health committee hearing, "My goal is to find a way to ensure food safety while promoting the growth of small restaurant entrepreneurs."
Chan said, "I have asked our Health Care Services Agency to craft a policy to accomplish this goal."
The pop-up restaurant scene in Alameda County has been in limbo since Aug. 21, when a county health inspector shut down the Korean pop-up Nokni at The Kebabery at 4201 Market St. in Oakland.
But county health officials have now reversed course and said Monday that for now they don't anticipate shutting down pop-ups that otherwise are in compliance with the terms of the food facility permit at their host location.
Health Care Services Agency Director Colleen Chawla said her agency is reviewing the law as well as other jurisdictions' policies regarding pop-ups and will come back to the health committee in the near future for a plan and a timeline for implementation.
County officials say they define pop-up restaurants as temporary, unpermitted businesses that operate within the permitted commercial kitchen of another established restaurant.
