Why should I add my documents?
A great benefit of The Food Corridor is the document tracking system. You can add expiration dates to any verification document and let The Food Corridor send you a notification before the document expires.
Expiration notifications are sent to both the kitchen admin and the food business 45 days, 2 weeks, and 3 days before the document is set to expire, giving you plenty of time to renew and update.
Different categories of documents can be uploaded and stored on the platform.
My Documents
Verification documents
These documents are specific to your food business and deem you as “verified” by The Food Corridor:
- Food Handler/ServSafe Certificate
- Food business license
- Insurance
You and Crowded Cookhouse can upload and access these documents.
Private documents
Private documents are documents just for you to access and are not visible to Crowded Cookhouse. You can upload these to your account to help you keep everything accessible and in one place.
Listing documents
Listing documents are documents that you want to be publicly visible on your food business listing, for marketing purposes for your company.
To add or update a document…
- Add: Documents tab > Add > Enter the expiration date > Save
- Update: Documents tab > pencil icon (edit) to the right of the document > Enter the expiration date > Save
If you’re on a monthly plan
If you cancel in advance of your booking, the hours will be added back to your monthly plan.
If you cancel within your kitchen’s cancellation penalty window, you will be charged for the cancellation fee.
If you’re on an hourly plan
If you cancel in advance of your booking, you will not be charged for those hours.
If you cancel within the 24 hr cancellation penalty window, you will be charged 50% of your scheduled time for the cancellation fee.
In the rare case that Crowded Cookhouse needs to delete a past booking after you’ve been charged for it, that amount is credited to your Food Corridor account balance. Any new bookings or charges will first be pulled from this credit before charging your payment method.
How to verify your bank account
- Select Bank Account (ACH) as your payment method option
- Enter your bank account and routing number at (https://app.thefoodcorridor.com/tfc_payment_capture?locale=en)
- 2-3 days after you enter this, our payment processor will deposit two amounts under $1 in that account. This is to verify that this is your account.
- Look for these amounts in your bank account. The statement description for these deposits will include “AMNTS:” and then the values of the two microdeposits that were sent.
- Note these amounts, and go to (https://app.thefoodcorridor.com/tfc_payment_capture?locale=en) and enter them. Enter the number of cents as a whole number. For instance, if you had $0.08 and $0.75 deposited, enter 8 and 75 into the form. This verifies that you own the bank account.
- After a day or two these amounts will be removed as one transaction. For example, you may have the amounts $0.08 and $0.75 deposited, but the amount removed will be $0.83 (the sum of the amounts deposited).
- Payment processing proceeds as usual.
Things to double check:
- Did you choose the correct bank account type (business or personal)?
- Does the name on the bank account match, exactly, the name you added in the payment capture page?
Tip: while you’re waiting on the microdeposits, you can update your payment method to a credit card in the meantime. Once you receive the microdeposits, you can “update” your payment method back to ACH, re-fill out your ACH info and enter the 2 deposits to verify.
Credit Card
Credit card payments are the easiest method to set up for food businesses, and credit card billing is processed the quickest. Credit card billing has a 4% platform fee.
ACH
ACH payment methods are more cumbersome to set up for food businesses (requires verification steps). However, the platform fee is lower than it is for credit cards, at 2% for any billed items.
The main differences
- ACH platform fees are less than credit card (2% vs 4%)
- ACH takes longer than a credit card to process (up to 7 days for ACH vs 3 days for credit card)
- Credit card requires fewer steps to set up than ACH
Watch this tutorial video to get started, or check out the steps below.
Log In
Go to app.thefoodcorridor.com/en/login and log-in if we have created an account for you.
If we have not created an account for you, sign-up for a new account:
- Choose food business, create a log-in, and click Create My Account.
- Fill our your business info, select Crowded Kitchen Community Cookhouse as your home kitchen, add a photo, and save!
- We will be notified and should approve you shortly as a member of the kitchen.
You can revise your business info at any time under Account Settings > Manage my Listing.
Add your Payment Method
Next, add your payment method by clicking on the Gear Icon > Account Settings > Payment Method > Update.
This is how you will pay for your kitchen usage. Your invoices are automatically billed, so you don’t have to worry about remembering to submit a payment!
Note: You cannot book on the kitchen’s calendars until we approve you and your payment method is added.
Decide if you want to pay by:
- Credit card / debit card, or
- Automatic Clearing House (ACH) to deduct directly from your bank account. Enter the information and follow these steps to verify your bank account.
You’re all set-up! You can now begin booking time on the kitchen calendars.
Our facility is small, so to ensure that all our members have access to storage we request that you limit your usage to a maximum of 3 shelves of dry storage, 3 shelves of cold storage and 1/2 a chest freezer.
If you need a little extra storage for a day or two before or after an event, you can use any available unrented shelving for $5 per day per shelf. See Storage Charts posted in the hallway (dry storage) and on the walk-in door (cold storage) to find available space.
If you think you’re going to require temporary storage longer than a few days, see a kitchen manager and we’ll make arrangements for the space you need if possible.
Platform Fees cover the cost of processing your payments and all the Food Corridor services. The Platform Fees are applied depending on which payment method you choose. The Platform Fees are:
- Credit or Debit – 4%.
- Bank transfer or ACH – 2%.
You’re free to book hours beyond your monthly plan. If you’re in the middle of a cook and think you might need more time,
There’s no penalty for going over your allotted hours – you’ll just pay the overage rate for any excess hours. Overage rates are $13-$15/hr depending on your plan. See Membership page for more details.
Overage hours will be added to your invoice for the following month.
If you can’t make your booking, be sure to cancel it as soon as possible. Bookings not cancelled at least 24 hours before their start times will be charged at a 50% rate.
There is a $200 annual membership fee for our hourly users. The membership fee is waived for users subscribing to any of our monthly membership plans. Monthly plan members downgrading to the hourly plan will not be required to pay the annual membership fee if they’ve been on any of our plans for a total of 6 months or more within a 12 month period.
Yes, the Crowded Cookhouse facility is equipped with state-of-the-art alarm and video surveillance systems. The exterior of the building is equipped with motion-sensing lighting that fully illuminates the premises when you approach, and all activity – both inside and out – is captured on video, 24/7.
We are a well-equipped, licensed and insured shared-use culinary facility located in Lancaster, PA. We provide a clean, climate-controlled professional environment where you can start and grow your food venture. At Crowded Cookhouse you can test your recipes, restock your food truck, bake breads & pastries, prep for your catering events or produce and pack your food products. We take care of all the services you’ll need along the way like cold, dry and freezer storage, towel and apron laundering, trash removal, recycling (oil, glass, plastic, metal and cardboard ), security, lockers, and much more.
Members are responsible for cleaning all pots, pans, equipment and all surfaces used, as well as sweeping and mopping floors around the work station(s) used. Members must also throw away any generated trash and are also responsible for cleaning and returning any Crowded Cookhouse equipment to storage, and for reporting any problems with equipment.
Crowded Cookhouse and its members also meet quarterly to “deep clean” the facility. This is a fun, casual way to get to know other members & network while keeping our space clean and sanitary.
Since foods and related items are generally not delivered by suppliers to private home addresses, Crowded Cookhouse may allow monthly plan members to receive on-site deliveries. It is the member’s responsibility, however, to procure and secure their own deliveries. Please note that deliveries are permitted only up to kitchen capacity.
Yes, because we are a small kitchen with limited space and resources, we have a cancellation policy to ensure that the facility doesn’t have long periods of downtime. Reservations not cancelled within 24 hours of the start time will be billed at 50%. There is no penalty for cancelling reservations more than 24 hours in advance.
If you’re just preparing food for yourself or for your family and friends, you do not need a health certificate. If you plan to sell the food you prepare here, then you are required to obtain one. Upon completion of membership requirements, we will schedule an appointment with the health department to obtain proper licenses.
Take the ServSafe Manager’s License test (NOT the food handler’s test) either online, or at a location convenient to you.
Monthly Plans
We offer a variety of monthly plans that include discounted hourly rates and storage fees. Please see our Membership page for up-to-date pricing and more details.
Overage rates vary based on membership plans and start at $13/hr. Membership dues are collected via automatic withdrawal on the 15th of each month. Both ACH and credit card payment methods available.
Day-Use Rates
There is a $200 annual kitchen membership fee for day-use and a 3 hour minimum for hourly bookings. The rates are as follows:
6am – 10pm: $15/hr
10pm – 6am: $12/hr
- 6 Burner Vulcan Range
- Bakers Pride Cyclone Convection Oven
- 1000 lb Ice Machine
- Half-Size Convection Oven
- Hobart Meat Slicer
- Waring Immersion Blender
- 12 qt Hobart Mixer
- 6 qt KitchenAid Mixer
- Assorted Small Appliances
- Meat Grinder
- 7 Stainless Steel Prep Tables
- 12″ Impulse Sealer
- Various Portioning Scales
- Walk-in Cooler
- 2 Freezers
- Pot, Hand & Prep Sinks
- Assorted Baking Pans
- Bakers Racks
- Sausage Stuffer
- 20 qt Pressure Canner
Most of the equipment you will need to prepare your food is right here at the kitchen. We do ask that you bring your own ingredients, proper hair restraint and gloves, disposables, and food storage containers.
Schedule a walk-through with Crowded Cookhouse. A kitchen manager will meet you at the kitchen, give you a tour of the facility and a membership packet.
Complete and submit the Application for Membership on our website.
We’ll schedule a meeting with the Lancaster Health Department at the Cookhouse to obtain your Health Certificate
Create an account at the Food Corridor
- Sign-up at: app.thefoodcorridor.com/en/signup
- Select Crowded Kitchen Community Cookhouse as your home kitchen.
- Set up your payment method in your Account Settings
- Request your first booking on the calendar