Did you see the thread in HN yesterday about the legal issues that AirBNB is having with various municipalities? That's nothing compared with what this company (and others like it) will have to deal with. I have to imagine that the health- and food-inspection departments in most states and cities are very tough. Plus, you might need to get insurance for everything from "patrons" getting sick, to kitchen fires. I don't even know if most homeowner insurance would cover the cost of damage if you were using your kitchen for commercial purposes and quantities.
And so on, and so on. As with AirBNB, I expect that we'll eventually find a middle ground between complete anarchy and stifling regulations. But on the face of it, operating a restaurant from your house sounds like a rat's nest (no pun intended) of financial and legal issues to deal with.
This might be an American-only thing, though. In Israel (where I live), many people run small catering companies (albeit not restaurants) from their home kitchens. Perhaps the government has rules about such things, but they aren't ever enforced. and in France, I can't imagine the government stopping people from cooking and serving (and selling) high-quality food.
And so on, and so on. As with AirBNB, I expect that we'll eventually find a middle ground between complete anarchy and stifling regulations. But on the face of it, operating a restaurant from your house sounds like a rat's nest (no pun intended) of financial and legal issues to deal with.
This might be an American-only thing, though. In Israel (where I live), many people run small catering companies (albeit not restaurants) from their home kitchens. Perhaps the government has rules about such things, but they aren't ever enforced. and in France, I can't imagine the government stopping people from cooking and serving (and selling) high-quality food.
We'll see, I guess...