Restaurant rodent rules and inspections in Waco

Published November 4, 2026

Waco-area food businesses are inspected by the Environmental Health division of the Waco-McLennan County Public Health District under the Texas Food Establishment Rules. The district uses demerits, and its code charges a reinspection fee when an inspection totals more than 30 demerits.

Who inspects

In Waco, food safety inspections come from the Environmental Health division of the Waco-McLennan County Public Health District, which says it serves facilities across McLennan County. Its page says the division conducts sanitation inspections at places where food is stored, prepared, served or sold, including restaurants, schools, nursing homes and farmers markets. The office is at 201 W. Waco Drive, and the division can be reached at envhealth@wacotx.gov.

This guide explains the rules inspectors use, how scores show up and what a manager can do about rodents. It’s general information. Your inspector and the current rules are the final word for your establishment.

The rules

The district’s Food Establishment Code, published on eCode360, adopts the Texas Food Establishment Rules “as currently promulgated by DSHS or hereafter amended.” Where the local article conflicts with another provision, the more stringent one applies.

The Texas Food Establishment Rules are Chapter 228 of Title 25 of the Texas Administrative Code. The current version took effect in August 2021 and adopts the 2017 FDA Food Code by reference, with Texas law prevailing where they conflict. The Food Code sorts requirements into priority items, priority foundation items and a third tier for general sanitation and upkeep.

The pest rules in those codes cover the things you’d expect: outer openings protected against insects and rodents, controlling pests on the premises, removing dead or trapped rodents promptly, rodent bait kept in proper bait stations, and storage and use of toxic materials.

Permits and the local code

The district’s Food Establishment Code adds local rules on top of the state ones:

• Permits are renewed every year, except for temporary establishments, and the district inspects before an initial permit or a renewal.
• A permit can’t be issued or renewed while unresolved priority violations or imminent health hazards remain.
• Most food employees need a food handler certificate within 30 days of hire, and establishments that handle time and temperature controlled foods need a certified food manager on duty.
• A permit can be suspended for noncompliance or an imminent health hazard, and food operations must stop immediately on suspension. Hearings have to be requested within five calendar days.
• A permit can be revoked for serious or repeated violations, and the holder can’t reapply for one year.
• Each day a violation exists is a separate misdemeanor offense.

Demerits and reinspection fees

The district’s code uses a demerit system. It says a reinspection fee applies when “the total cumulative demerit values of an inspection report exceeds thirty (30) demerits,” and it lists reinspection and reinstatement fees of $50 each.

In KWTX’s regular Restaurant Report Card for Central Texas, Waco-area scores appear alongside demerits, and the numbers line up as 100 minus the demerits. In the June 2025 report, for one example, a restaurant that failed a routine inspection scored 68 with 32 demerits. KWTX notes that it doesn’t assign the scores and that questions about a score or reinspection go to the county health department.

The Environmental Health page links to a Food Inspection Scores page that explains how restaurants are scored and lists recent results.

Rodent complaints get investigated

Customer complaints about rodents can lead to inspections. In late November 2025, KWTX reported that Environmental Health was investigating mice at a Waco movie theater after customers reported encounters during screenings. The station said staff had done onsite inspections and were in contact with management one to three times a week, and the theater said it had brought in pest specialists.

State law on rodent infestations

Texas Health and Safety Code Section 341.018 applies to any business, not only food service. A person who possesses an enclosed structure used for public trade, and knows it’s infested with rodents, must try to exterminate them by poisoning, trapping, fumigating or other appropriate means and provide every practical means of eliminating rats.

What gets a kitchen written up

Based on the pest rules above, these are the rodent findings that cause trouble:

• Droppings in dry storage, under equipment or on the cook line
• Gnawed packaging or food
• A dead rodent in a trap nobody checked
• Gaps under exterior doors or around pipes and conduit
• Back doors propped open during service or deliveries
• Bait used outside of proper stations or near food

Temporary events and food trucks

Waco has a lot of event food: the Heart O’ Texas Fair & Rodeo at the Extraco Events Center every October, the Saturday farmers market downtown on Washington Avenue, and events on Elm Avenue. The district’s code covers mobile and roadside vehicles, which must display the owner’s name and phone number, carry a valid permit and meet cleanliness standards, including pest control.

For trucks and trailers, check for droppings before loading food, keep supplies in sealed bins off the ground, and don’t leave food in a parked vehicle between events.

Who should do the pest work

TDA’s licensing page lists apartment buildings, hotels, schools, warehouses, most food-processing sites and similar places where anyone doing pest control must be licensed, and it excludes restaurants and retail food service from that on-site rule. Even so, most restaurants hire a licensed pest control company, because the provider’s records and know-how help at inspection time. The license guide explains how to check a company.

A good restaurant program includes exterior stations around the building where appropriate, traps inside kept away from food, sealing at doors and utility penetrations, and a written log of every visit. Commercial rodent control covers what to ask for.

Records to keep on file

• The pest provider’s service agreement and visit schedule
• A log of every visit with the date, findings and actions
• A map of trap and station locations
• Labels and safety data sheets for any products used
• The provider’s TDA business license number

What managers can do every day

Close the back door. Break down boxes and get them out of dry storage. Keep food off the floor on shelving. Clean under equipment on a schedule, not just when it looks dirty. Keep dumpster lids shut and the dumpster area clean. Check traps on the provider’s schedule and report any sighting the same day.

If you find droppings, clean them the safe way, spraying with disinfectant and wiping up, not sweeping. The droppings cleanup page has the CDC steps.