If you’re working in a restaurant, food truck, catering service, or grocery store in Tennessee, having a food service license is essential. Our online Food Service License Tennessee helps food handlers meet state requirements while learning how to prevent foodborne illness and ensure customer safety.
This course is ideal for anyone preparing or serving food in Tennessee, including servers, cooks, kitchen staff, and entry-level workers.
✅ 100% Online – Learn on your schedule
✅ Meets Tennessee Food Safety Requirements
✅ Easy-to-Use, Mobile-Friendly Platform
✅ Perfect for Food Handlers & Entry-Level Workers
✅ Instant Certificate Download After Completion



















Education is the best tool to prevent, minimize, or eliminate foodborne illnesses and food hazards.
Training helps reduce or eliminate food safety hazards before they become major issues.
Reducing food safety complaints will create a happier workplace and in turn increase productivity.
Serving safe food will increase productivity will in turn increase workplace satisfaction.
A Food Handler card is a certificate showing that you’ve completed a state-approved food safety course and passed an exam. In California, most employees who prepare, store, or serve food must obtain a Food Handler card within 30 days of hire.
Food safety certification is official recognition that you have been trained in proper food handling, hygiene, temperature control, cross-contamination prevention, and other safety practices. In California, the most advanced version of this is the Certified Food Protection Manager (CFPM) certification.
California requires at least one Certified Food Protection Manager (CFPM) in each food facility, with certification from a nationally accredited food manager program through the ANAB and the Conference for Food Protection (CFP).
All food employees in California must complete an ANAB accredited food handler training course within 30 days of hire, as required by Health & Safety Code §113948. Some counties, such as Riverside, San Bernardino, and San Diego, have their own food handler card requirements that take precedence over the state law. Employees must also provide a copy of their certificate to their employer, who is required to keep records on file.
Effective January 1, 2024, Senate Bill 476 (SB 476) shifts the responsibility of training costs from employees to employers. Employers must pay for accredited training, cover related expenses, compensate employees for the time spent on training/testing, excuse them from regular duties during the course or exam, and cannot require applicants to already hold a card as a condition of employment. Food handler cards remain valid for three (3) years.
The Food Handler card covers basic safety for entry-level workers, while the Food Protection Manager Certification is an advanced qualification for supervisors or managers, focusing on compliance, HACCP, and leadership in food safety.
Yes. Under California Assembly Bill 1221, alcohol servers and their managers must complete Responsible Beverage Service (RBS) training and pass an online exam.
It is valid for five years, after which you must retake and pass the nationally accredited exam.
AAA Food Handler combines state-specific compliance expertise, national accreditation, and a decade of training experience to ensure California food service teams meet the highest safety standards.
Yes. We offer California Food Handler cards, Food Manager Certification, Responsible Beverage Service (RBS) alcohol training, and Food Allergen courses.
Yes. AAA Food Handler provides discounted pricing and easy tracking for restaurants, hotels, schools, and catering companies training multiple employees.
AAA Food Handler combines state-specific compliance expertise, national accreditation, and a decade of training experience to ensure California food service teams meet the highest safety standards.
With AAA Food Handler’s online course, you can finish in about two hours and download your card instantly after passing.
Tennessee agencies expect food workers to be trained in safe handling. A food handler certificate shows you understand hygiene, illness reporting, cross-contamination prevention, and time/temperature control — the core of a food service license Tennessee compliance mindset.
Complete the AAA Food Handler’s online course, pass the test, and download your certificate instantly. Share it with your employer as proof of training.
Employers in Tennessee typically accept a 2 to 3 year period. Check your workplace policy and renew it before it expires to stay compliant.
Line and prep cooks, servers, bartenders who handle food, dish/prep crew, bussers, cashiers in food areas — across restaurants, groceries, cafeterias, commissaries, caterers, and food trucks.
Pass a Food Protection Manager Certification exam accredited by the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB) and recognized by the Conference for Food Protection (CFP). AAA Food Handler offers an ANAB-accredited option accepted in Tennessee.
Each operation needs a person in charge who can demonstrate active food safety knowledge. Holding a Food Protection Manager Certification is the most direct way to meet that expectation and lead daily compliance.
Food Manager Certification is commonly recognized for up to 5 years. Plan to renew by passing another ANAB-accredited exam before it expires.
They verify employee training, monitor cooking/cooling, storage, and sanitizing, manage incident responses, and maintain documentation — anchoring your food service license in Tennessee compliance.
It prepares staff to identify the nine major allergens, prevent cross-contact, and respond to reactions — critical for safe service and a strong food service license in Tennessee.
Anyone who prepares, handles, or serves food: cooks, bakers, servers, bar/counter staff handling garnishes or shared equipment, dish/prep teams, and supervisors.
Yes. AAA Food Handler’s self-paced course works on any device; download your certificate as soon as you finish.
About two hours for most learners, with the flexibility to pause and review sections as needed.
Food Service Establishments (Restaurants, Hotels, Bed & Breakfasts):
Tennessee Department of Health
Division of General Environmental Health
710 James Robertson Parkway
Nashville, TN 37243
Phone: (615) 741-3111
Retail Food Stores and Food Manufacturing:
Tennessee Department of Agriculture
Food Safety Section
Ellington Agricultural Center
P.O. Box 40627
Nashville, TN 37204
Phone: (615) 837-5193
Food Handler Reviews
4.9
This food handler course was very helpful and easy to understand. The lessons were clear and covered important topics like food safety, hygiene, and proper handling techniques. I liked how everything was explained in a simple way, which made it easier to remember. Overall, it was a good learning experience and I feel more confident about handling food safely.
The videos was long, but helpful to remember
Fast, easy to understand.
Very informative and great information
Very informative
This is my second time taking food handler course, this is so much easier than going to a class room.
My review was helpful and informative.
Love it ! !
Remembering all the temps and procedures
This is a wonderful course. It gives you all the information you will need to be a successful food handler. 💯
enjoying and fast
Food Manager Reviews
4.9
It was a very informative course.
The slides were quick, easy to understand, and straight to the point! well done.
The course was easy to navigate through and very thorough.
very informative and thorough
Everything was broken down in a way you can easily understand.
Thorough, easy to follow, and detailed course.
l loved taking this course it has enriched my knowledge
It was very informative.
The courses were very helpful.
Very informative
the only thing that I would recommend in the future is easier progress tracking. I would reccomend this course do to the national recognition that it has.
Information was clearly presented
Great material and explanations. Easy to understand.
This was a very well laid out and produced course. I appreciated the way it was organized. It kept me engaged throughout.
Was not as complicated as expected. I learned what was need and am now ready to take the test.
Straightforward and fun
Food Allergen Reviews
5.0
The course wasn’t only affordable it was also easy to follow and understand, the videos are short, informative and to the point. The course is only an hour give or take. Convenient for me to be able to do it online using only my phone as I’m always busy and don’t have time to be in a actual classroom. I highly recommend this course. Can never be to safe or qualified.
10/10 course. informative and easy to understand!
We wanted to have a a group of volunteers take the course together. We opened one license of 7 – all went through the material – then found that we could not fast forward to the test when finished without every person except the original rewatching.
This was discouraging – and we do not have our people through this yet because of it.
Loved it.
Easy to understand and follow
This course was easy to follow and understand. It was very informational for anyone in food service.
clear and concise, easy to navigate and informational
Very informative, i lovce to cook it is my fav thing to do. learned alot
Very informative. More knowledge more power!
Nice that you can playback at 2x. Informative and clear.
I think this is a great program . and I feel the video are very informational and helpful
This training was awesome. Very informative. I took in a lot of information. I didn’t know Soy was an allergen but I know now!
Test was quick, informative and painless.
Harassment Training Review
5.0
learned a lot