La Cocina (2005)
La Cocina opened in San Francisco's Mission District as a shared commercial kitchen for low-income and immigrant food entrepreneurs. It offered affordable kitchen time, business training, and help getting licensed.
Dozens of food businesses launched from its kitchen, several growing into permanent restaurants.
La Cocina became a national model for food incubators, proving that access to a licensed kitchen is the main barrier for small food businesses.
Prep Space, where Updawgs is licensed, runs the same playbook: rent kitchen space to food businesses so they can start without building their own commercial facility.
