Tacos Cometa vows it will rise again (Image: @tacoscometa)

The crackdown on unpermitted mobile food vendors has barely dented the Capitol Hill late night street food scene even as taco tents and hot dog grillers continued to get dinged by the health department.

One of the most recent shutdowns was Tacos Cometa, which Seattle/King County Public Health describes as a “pop-up table” inspectors cited for a list of violations including operating without a valid permit. That bust came at Nagle and Pine just after 5 PM on Friday, May 16th. Hours later, unpermitted vendors dotted corners around Cal Anderson Park and the Pike/Pine nightlife district joining the areas bars, restaurants, and vendors with permits serving late night crowds.

Other recent busts include Mero Mero Tamalero at Broadway and Cherry which was doing brisk business earlier this spring outside Swedish Medical Center. So much for health concerns. 

CHS reported here in December on a crackdown on unpermitted vendors amid a major increase in the tables, carts, trailers, and more trying to get in on the Capitol Hill street food action.

Late last year, Pike/Pine retailers, bars, and restaurants worked with District 3 representative Joy Hollingsworth to address the surge in unpermitted food vendors they said were creating public safety issues including improper disposal of waste, garbage left behind by workers and customers, and what some venues say are unsafe crowds forming outside their businesses.

Health officials say the setups typically lack hand washing, clean water, or refrigeration.

The vendors are also lacking in paperwork. County officials say they are stepping up efforts to help people start permitted businesses including outreach to community-based organizations “to help vendors navigate the permitting process with culturally and linguistically relevant strategies.” Vendors can also schedule one-on-one help over the phone by calling 206-263-9566.

The process requires multiple meetings and inspections and the permit fees remain steep, running around $600 to more than $1,000 a year depending on the type of mobile service planned.

Getting busted, meanwhile, is a drag. The health department says its safety team “takes an educational approach to enforcement. “When Public Health is alerted to an unpermitted vendor, we visit to educate the vendor about the permitting process and suspend the vendor’s operations to prevent the risk of foodborne illnesses,” the county told CHS last year.

Enforcement, however, remains a growing challenge as the Seattle Police Department has decided not to get involved, leaving the job to county health resources. Officials are asking diners to look for permits and have expanded the county’s food safety rating system to include mobile vendors. “Now, all permitted food businesses in King County – from restaurants to food trucks and stands at farmers markets – should have a food safety rating sign from Public Health displayed for customers,” the county says.

Late night diners probably aren’t looking for the little food safety rating faces — but they are looking for something delicious and a good deal.

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