MorningSheetKitchen equipment sellers: finding restaurants at plan review
Every new commercial kitchen in Washington has its equipment list checked by the health department before construction starts. That review, and the mechanical permits that come after it, tell a dealer or installer who is buying and roughly when.
Washington's food code asks a new restaurant for a document most equipment reps would like to see on day one. Under WAC 246-215-08205, the plans must show the proposed equipment types, manufacturers, model numbers, locations, dimensions, performance capacities, and installation specifications.
Someone writes that list before the plans go in. Often it is a kitchen designer or a dealer. If it is not you, the restaurant's equipment budget is largely spoken for by the time anything is built.
What goes into a health plan review
The state rule (WAC 246-215-08200) requires plans to be submitted and approved before a food establishment is built, before an existing building is converted to one, and, when the health department asks, before a remodel. Section 08205 lists what the plans contain: the intended menu, the expected food volume, the layout, mechanical schematics, finish schedules, and the equipment details above.
The counties put it in plainer terms. Public Health Seattle and King County's submittal tip sheet asks for a site plan, menu, equipment floor plan, equipment list or schedule, and surface finish schedule. It also tells owners not to buy equipment or start construction until the written approval arrives.
Two things follow for a seller. The menu drives the line: a fryer and a charbroiler mean a Type I hood and suppression, a bakery case means refrigeration. And the approved plan is binding. Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department says that changing the floor plan, equipment, or menu after approval and before the preopening inspection voids the approval. Swapping a unit late can mean a resubmittal, which owners avoid.
The three county clocks
| Agency | First review, as stated | What they say |
|---|---|---|
| Public Health Seattle and King County | Up to 8 to 10 weeks | Pre-operational inspection required before operating. 2026 base fee for new construction: $1,008. |
| Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department | Usually within 10 days | Schedule the pre-opening inspection at least 5 business days before opening. |
| Snohomish County Health Department | About 12 weeks | "Once an approval letter is received, you may begin construction." |
In King and Snohomish, that queue is two to three months in which the restaurant knows roughly what it will buy and has not paid for it. Pierce moves faster, so the gap between plan and purchase is shorter there.
Where plan review shows up in the record
Snohomish County publishes plan review applications through its online permit system, which we read daily. In the last 90 days, 33 new food establishments filed a plan review there and 22 had one approved. A submitted plan is the earliest equipment signal we see anywhere: construction cannot start until it is approved.
In King and Pierce we do not read health plan reviews from an open feed. There, the equipment signal shows up next in the city building and trade permits.
Mechanical permits: the hood, the walk-in, the grease line
The kitchen's big systems each need their own permit, and the permit names the job.
- Hoods. Seattle's commercial kitchen hood worksheet says the exhaust fan, duct, hood, any pollution control unit, and the make-up air go in one permit application. Our Seattle hood and suppression guide has the local timelines and the contractors who pull these permits most.
- Refrigeration. Tacoma's restaurant tip sheet says ventilation systems, mechanical units, refrigeration units, and coolers all require mechanical permits, and that the mechanical contractor obtains the hood permits.
- Grease. In Seattle the interceptor's plumbing permit comes from Public Health, not the city building department, so it does not show in the city's permit data. The Seattle grease trap guide explains which drains must connect and how units are sized.
Across the Washington city permit feeds we read, 36 food businesses had a building permit filed or issued in the last 90 days whose text names a hood, fire suppression, grease, a walk-in, a cooler, or refrigeration. Hoods came up in 43 permits, suppression in 15, and grease in 5. Many more permits just say "tenant improvement" or "restaurant remodel," so the word search undercounts. Our weekly read of Seattle restaurant build-out permits shows what that stage looks like in one city.
Who should call at which filing
- Equipment dealers and kitchen designers: before plan review, or at it. The equipment schedule is being written. In Snohomish, a submitted plan review is your cue. Elsewhere, a liquor application or a new business license at a food address is often the earliest public sign.
- Hood and fire suppression installers: at the building permit. By the time a hood permit shows up, a mechanical contractor is usually hired. That is still a live lead for the suppression system, which Tacoma says may need its own hood fire protection permit, and for the hood cleaning and inspection contract after opening.
- Refrigeration installers: at plan approval or the building permit. The cold-holding units are on the approved list; the walk-in and any remote condensers need a mechanical installer.
A weekly routine for one rep
Once a week, pull new Snohomish plan reviews, then search your cities' permit portals for commercial permits naming a hood, walk-in, or grease interceptor, and check the WSLCB notices for new restaurant applications in your area. Expect an hour or two, and expect to miss the permits that only say "tenant improvement." Call the ones whose plans are still in review first. When the mechanical permit names a contractor, the hood is sold; the equipment list was settled weeks before.