‘I promise you that fork you’re eating with came out of the washer with spinach on it’: Food service worker dishes on gross restaurant cleanliness practices - The Daily Dot

If you find yourself worrying about the cleanliness of silverware at the restaurants you eat at, you might have a good reason to be apprehensive.

In a stitched response to TikToker @kuyyannunu, user @tequila.9 went on fast-paced rant highlighting all of the sketchy food safety practices that occur in restaurants away from the gaze of customers.

“I promise you that that fork you’re eating with came out of the washer with spinach on it that just got rinsed off,” @tequila.9 says in the clip.

According to the TikToker, the griminess doesn’t just stop at your utensils.

“I promise you that the table you’re eating off of only got wiped down with a stank kitchen rag that was wet from dirty dishwater. I promise that whoever set your table was scraping crust off your plate with nails immediately before you used it,” she continues. “And I’m willing to be that if the health department showed up to the restaurant you’re eating at right now, everybody in the kitchen would be going crazy in the walk-in fridge changing all the dates on the food.”

According to Jolt, the biggest factor customers consider in determining whether or not they plan on returning to a restaurant is cleanliness. The outlet cites a study from Business Wire which states that 75% of patrons wouldn’t return to an eatery that had unflattering reviews when it comes to sanitary dining conditions. It adds, “Restaurants are the most negatively affected business by negative reviews about cleanliness, even above hotels and doctor’s offices.”

@tequila.9’s video prompted a litany of reactions from viewers, many of whom said that working in the food service industry has made them warier of eating out.

“Working restaurant jobs makes me realize we do have food at home,” one user wrote.

“It’s the same everywhere. It’s why I won’t work at my favorite places. I choose to be blissfully UNAWARE,” another said.

However, other food service workers said that they never worked at a dirty location before.

“As a cook who is proud of her line, it’s just YOUR workplace, I promise,” a commenter said.

“lmao the 7+ years I worked in food service none of the restaurants were like this,” another wrote.

“IDK what dirty places y’all worked at but we use soap & water at my jobs,” a third added.

The Daily Dot reached out to @tequila.9 via TikTok comment.