The COOK Alliance is a nonprofit working to legitimize and support informal home cooking businesses…
…so that culinary entrepreneurship is accessible to all, and particularly empowering for homemakers, caregivers, women, people of color, and immigrants.
We legalized the first home restaurants by passing Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operations (MEHKO) laws in California and are now expanding opportunities and resources for these small businesses.
Vision
We envision a world in which home-based culinary entrepreneurs, particularly from historically underserved communities, have meaningful, low-barrier opportunities to earn dignified, livable incomes through their small businesses and expand access to fresh meals and deeper, resilient community connection.
MAKE YOURSELF AT HOME
We’re the COOK Alliance: a coalition of immigrants, stay at home parents, community builders, educators, activists, policy makers, entrepreneurs, and home cooks.
Our Work
Advancing Advocacy
We champion the legitimization of home cooking businesses, encourage regulations that promote healthy food access, and work with environmental health departments for effective MEHKO support.
Building Businesses
We empower MEHKOs by providing wrap-around business education, operational resources, and funding to support culinary entrepreneurs with starting their small businesses.
Cultivating Community
We promote awareness of MEHKOs among the public and aspiring home cooks, facilitate the discovery of MEHKOs in their local areas, and foster community connections between culinary entrepreneurs.
Developing Data
We track the progress and expansion of the MEHKO movement, utilizing focus groups, surveys, and partnerships with academic institutions to gain comprehensive insights into the evolving needs.
Our People:
The Entrepreneur
Legalizing home cooking lowers barrier to entry for food entrepreneurship and decriminalizes previously informal businesses.
The At Home Parent
Home cooking gives parents an accessible income opportunity that meets them where they are, works around their schedule, & lets them prioritize family values.
The Community Pillar
Home cooking mitigates gentrification pressure by helping established local residents earn income while offering new neighbors warm food & welcome.
The Newcomer
Home cooking provides immigrant security & decolonizes food trends, letting people be the faces & benefactors of their own cultures.
Home cooking doesn’t just provide healthier food access and strengthen community fabric.
It helps us remember that we’re all in this together.
Home cooking reminds us that the everyday burdens, big & small, don't need to be shouldered alone.
We believe that in moments of uncertainty or loneliness, it’s important to know that somewhere nearby, there’s a seat at a table, in a warmly lit kitchen, filled with the smells of home cooked food.