By sharing food on ChefxDoor you are an independent home-based food operator. You — not ChefxDoor — are responsible for the food you make, how it is handled, and compliance with the law.
ChefxDoor operates a community platform where home cooks (“Chef”, “you”) share cooking stories, build a following, and independently arrange food purchases with consumers. ChefxDoor is not a restaurant, food provider, caterer, retailer, ordering service, or delivery service. ChefxDoor does not prepare, store, package, transport, or deliver food; does not inspect kitchens or certify food safety; and is not a party to any transaction between you and a customer.
You are solely and exclusively responsible for: (a) ingredient sourcing and quality; (b) food preparation, storage, and handling; (c) packaging, pickup, and any delivery; (d) accurate menu descriptions, photos, pricing, and availability; (e) timely communication with and fulfillment for customers; and (f) compliance with all federal, state, and local laws applicable to your activity, including food safety, labor, tax, and health regulations.
You represent that you are at least 18 years of age and that you have independently reviewed and will comply with the cottage food, home kitchen, food handler, and any other licensing requirements that apply where you prepare and sell food. In Illinois, you may not sell items prohibited by the Illinois Cottage Food Operation Act unless you operate from a properly permitted Retail Food Establishment. You will provide every customer with the home-kitchen disclaimer required by law on packaging or in writing at handoff.
ChefxDoor does not inspect your kitchen or preparation space, does not certify your food safety practices, and does not verify your compliance with local, state, or federal law. Appearing on ChefxDoor does not constitute regulatory approval, food safety certification, or endorsement of any kind. Certain foods may not be legally sold from home kitchens in your jurisdiction; you are solely responsible for determining what you may legally offer before listing it on the platform.
You will follow safe food-handling, temperature, sanitation, and cross-contamination practices. You will accurately disclose ingredients and the presence of common allergens (milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soy, sesame). You acknowledge that home kitchens can carry cross-contamination risk and will communicate this to customers who ask. You will not knowingly sell food that is unsafe, recalled, expired, or otherwise unfit for human consumption.
Any claim you make about your food — including “halal”, “kosher”, “vegetarian”, “vegan”, “gluten-free”, “organic”, “dairy-free”, or similar — must be truthful and substantiated. ChefxDoor does not verify these claims. Misrepresenting your food may result in immediate removal of the listing and termination of your account, in addition to any legal exposure you bear directly.
No payment processing by ChefxDoor. ChefxDoor does not collect, hold, transfer, or process any money on behalf of you or your customers. ChefxDoor is not a payment processor, money transmitter, or escrow agent. All payments are made directly between you and your customer using a method you both arrange outside the App (for example, cash, Venmo, Zelle, or another peer-to-peer payment service).
Taxes. You are solely responsible for reporting all income you receive and for paying any sales, income, self-employment, or other applicable taxes. ChefxDoor does not issue tax forms on your behalf and is not responsible for any unpaid balances, chargebacks, or payment disputes between you and a customer.
Nothing in this Agreement creates an employment, partnership, joint venture, agency, or franchise relationship between you and ChefxDoor. You are not an employee, contractor, agent, or representative of ChefxDoor. You set your own hours, prices, menu, and methods. ChefxDoor has no right to direct or control how you prepare food, when you cook, or how you fulfill arrangements. You are free to offer food on other platforms simultaneously; ChefxDoor does not require exclusivity. Your presence on ChefxDoor does not create any scheduling obligation or minimum activity requirement.
You are responsible for honoring the commitments you make through the platform. If you need to cancel a scheduled meal drop or arrangement, you must notify affected customers as early as possible. Repeated cancellations without notice may result in account suspension or removal. You determine your own pickup window and policies; you are not obligated to hold food indefinitely for late or no-show customers. ChefxDoor does not mediate pickup disputes, adjudicate food complaints, or process refunds on your behalf.
The “Known For” feature and similar community recognition signals on ChefxDoor reflect engagement-based metrics — such as views, follows, demand signals, and user interactions — and are not quality certifications, professional verifications, safety endorsements, or ratings issued by ChefxDoor. Do not represent “Known For” designations or similar platform signals as independent professional certification or regulatory endorsement when communicating with customers or in any other context.
You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless ChefxDoor LLC and its officers, directors, employees, and agents from and against any and all claims, damages, losses, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or related to: (a) any food you prepare, package, or sell; (b) any allergic reaction, illness, injury, or property damage allegedly caused by your food; (c) your violation of any law, permit, or regulation; (d) your misrepresentation of ingredients, allergens, or dietary claims; or (e) any dispute between you and a customer.
ChefxDoor strongly recommends — and may in the future require — that you carry general liability insurance with a product-liability endorsement appropriate to home food preparation. You acknowledge that ChefxDoor does not provide insurance coverage for you or your activity.
You grant ChefxDoor a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicensable license to host, store, display, reproduce, modify (for formatting and resizing), and distribute the photos, videos, descriptions, menu items, and other content you upload, and to use your kitchen name and dish names, solely for operating, promoting, and marketing the ChefxDoor platform. You retain ownership of your content. This license ends when you remove the content, except for copies retained for legal, audit, or backup purposes.
ChefxDoor may, in its discretion, suspend, restrict, hide, remove listings, or terminate your account — with or without notice — if it believes you have violated this Agreement, the Terms of Service, or applicable law, or if necessary to protect customers or the platform. ChefxDoor may also remove or label content that it believes is unsafe, misleading, or non-compliant.
This Agreement remains in effect for as long as you use ChefxDoor as a Chef. You may stop selling at any time. Sections 2 (responsibilities for past sales), 4 (allergens for past sales), 6 (taxes), 10 (indemnification), 12 (content license, to the extent of content not removed), and any other provisions that by their nature should survive will survive termination.
ChefxDoor may update this Agreement from time to time. When the Agreement materially changes, ChefxDoor will request your re-acceptance before you can continue selling. Your continued selling activity after re-acceptance constitutes acceptance of the updated Agreement.
This Agreement is governed by the laws of the State of Illinois, without regard to its conflict-of-law rules. Any dispute arising out of this Agreement is subject to the dispute-resolution provisions of the ChefxDoor Terms of Service.
Questions about this Agreement? Contact ChefxDoor at legal@chefxdoor.com.