Anonymous wrote:A waiter once had really long nails, there was dark black crud almost an itch thick under them and his fingers was touching the food on the plate. It was so discusting no one wanted to eat our meals. It was so discusting I will never forget it.

Starbucks employee handed me my coffee and her nails looked like she was a junkie. Dirty and so gross. I threw that coffee right in the trash.

Anonymous wrote:I worked at one & nobody washed their hands.

I worked at a restaurant in college and there were some nasty *** employees. Some of the waitresses would blow their nose in the back really quickly and not wash their hands. They’d come to work sick with contagious illnesses. I’d call them out for being gross and then they treated me like I was an uptight Karen.

You probably don’t want to open that box, but chefs regularly sweat, bleed, breathe into our food, dip their fingers in and then lick them. It’s the way people have been eating for centuries. Honestly the cleanest places to eat are probably those chipotles run by robots.

If you’re that paranoid you should eat all your meals at home.

A waiter once had really long nails, there was dark black crud almost an itch thick under them and his fingers was touching the food on the plate. It was so discusting no one wanted to eat our meals. It was so discusting I will never forget it.

Honestly, the problem isn't their hands generally. I've worked in two different restaurants, people are generally pretty good about washing their hands if they're touching your food. It's less contact that you get from eating a home cooked meal at someone else's house, I'm sure. Yeah, we go from credit card swiping to carrying your plate over, but we're not actually plating your food.

The gross part is that restaurant workers don't get sick leave. Nearly universally. And you're talking about people living paycheck to paycheck. So if they can walk, they're coming to work. Colds and flu are rampant. People with stomach bugs stay and work as much of their shift as they can, puking in between. If you want less germs at restaurants, forget about hand washing and focus on government-mandated paid sick leave.

Haha, wait til get a look at the hands in the kitchen actually touching your food. Yes, even in the fancy places. (Often even more so.)

I worked as a waitress and bartender and washed my hands frequently. Can’t say that is common of everyone, however.

Stay home. You’re not prepared to be in public

Anonymous wrote:They must have dirty hands. Cleaning up food plates off the table, wiping it down with that spray and a nasty old rag, dealing with credit cards, cash, computer screens etc. I cleaned up after my kids this morning and my hands are so dirty. Thoughts?

Wash your hands.

Look, the key to eating anything is not thinking too hard bout it and understanding that our bodies are all the better for a little dirt. Once you’ve learned that a certain amount of insect parts are allowed in cans, or that sure, you give your berries a quick rinse but a bird may have pooped on them, the person preparing the food is wearing gloves, but they could have been wearing those gloves when they touched their face or took the prior customer’s money, and and so on and so forth, you just have to put it out of your mind and let it go. Whether the food is made in your home or at the restaurant, doesn’t matter, it’s not completely “clean,” nor does it need to be.

DW serves at a busy restaurant. She tries to wash her hands frequently, but there's usually no time.

It is what it is. If you want germ-free, eat at home.

I hear that they must wash their hands after going to the bathroom, so there’s that.

You should be a hermit

I worked at one & nobody washed their hands.

They must have dirty hands. Cleaning up food plates off the table, wiping it down with that spray and a nasty old rag, dealing with credit cards, cash, computer screens etc. I cleaned up after my kids this morning and my hands are so dirty. Thoughts?