A health inspector has dished out the four red flags to look out for when dining at restaurants.
The employee, from the US, has shared the things that don’t meet her guidelines, ranging from buffets and dirty bathrooms to large menus and unhappy staff.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Restaurant red flags.
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“I’ve seen a lot,” she said in her TikTok video.
She says she never dines at buffets because they are “unsanitary” with “lots of germ spread”.
According to previous studies, buffets are said to be a “breeding ground” for germs and bacteria, particularly cases where unsanitary customers are handling the food at self-serve stations.
The inspector claims restaurants with a dirty bathroom are a tell-tale sign of a “dirty kitchen”.
Interestingly, she says she avoids venues with too-large menus because they are likely to serve customers frozen items.
“Large menu means lots of cheap frozen food,” she said.
“In my experience, the majority of the places I’ve inspected with large menus do not have fresh food.
“There’s always exceptions of course, but very few.”
‘Breaks my heart’
Finally, she never eats at places where staff members “seem unhappy to work there”.
“Unhappy staff usually means bad owners,” she claimed.
“I love to see places where staff are happy. Breaks my heart when I see an abusive owner.”
Her video has been viewed more than 700,000 times – with dozens of diners and hospitality workers agreeing with her.
“Bartender of eight years here, and I couldn’t agree more, especially the staff. It shows good management, also known as a good restaurant,” one woman said.
Another declared: “As a restaurant owner for over 30 years, she’s absolutely right.”
One suggested: “I always go into the bathroom first. If it’s dirty I walk out. If the bathroom is dirty, the kitchen and the cooks and servers hands probably are too.”
Rule of thumb
Another revealed: “I learned from a health inspector that if the bathrooms are bad the kitchen is probably bad. My rule of thumb.”
One recalled: “My dad would always check out the restrooms before dining out. We didn’t understand until we got older and told us the reasoning for doing that.”
While another added: “Unhappy staff – 100 per cent because all that energy goes right into the food.”
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