You have no one but yourself to blame for your bad meal now.
According to chefs, some tell-tale signs a restaurant is bad are…
1.
“If you notice your feet sticking to the floor, turn around and leave immediately.”
“Number one evaluation effect for me is smell.
If its a sour smell or disinfectant smell red flag.”
“When there are pictures of food on the menu that clearly aren’t from the restaurant.”
“Seeing fruit flies.
Fruit flies are an indication of a dirty kitchen.”
“Stay away from buffets and salad bars.
A lot of the time it is the same stuff that just gets refilled over and over.
It’s so they don’t have to sell you the real thing.
A prime example is ‘krab cakes.'”
“Watch the wait staff.
If the majority of them seem disgruntled or upset, things probably aren’t great.
They probably don’t care about your food if they aren’t being treated fairly.”
“No matter how well managed a buffet is, it can never be sanitary.
It is not reasonably possible to run a sanitary buffet business.”
It has to be good bread.
If they can’t get the bread right, they don’t know anything.
No chef in their right mind half-asses the bread."
“If the waiting staff grabs clean glasses at the top when handling them.”
“Most often, lemons for water are really gross and dirty.”
“Carpet is a red flag.
“A very well-hidden kitchen is usually a bad sign.”
“If the area is busy but the restaurant is empty, thats usually a bad sign.”
“If you could smell the seafood when you walk in, then it’s not fresh.
“Dont order fish on Sundays.
Most places get their fish deliveries on a Monday and on a Thursday.
Fish goes off fairly quickly, and on a Sunday its really not great.”
“If you see lots of plates left half-full, run.”
“If your servers response to ‘How is the [item]?’
seems disingenuous, thats a big red flag.
“Cheap ketchup on the table, or if they even let you see the ketchup brand.”
Does it taste like chlorine?
Does it smell like a dishwasher?
Is there any odor at all as my face approaches the cup?
Is the cup hot?
“Does it sound like it could be two or more restaurants?
For example, sushi and pizza at the same place.
They probably can’t do either well.”
“Ask where your oysters come from.
If they dont know, you dont want them.
This works for most seafood.”
“My ex-husband was a chef.
We always left if he saw workers not wearing nonslip shoes.
If they dont maintain the fryer oil, they don’t deep-clean at all.”
“Look at the wait staff’s name tags.
People usually keep the same name tags the entire time they work there.
There should be a little bit of wear and tear on them.
This usually means the kitchen is going down in flames.”
“I look for dust.
Dust on the ceiling tiles or in the air-conditioning vents.
And if there are tiles actually missing?
“Any bars with incredibly large/deep ice tubs.
If you’re going to have ice in your drink, ask when it was last emptied and cleaned.
“Random, but if there’s a fish tank, take a look at it.
If it’s clean, you could bet the kitchen is too.”
“Former restaurant manager here.
I judge by the cleanliness of the windowsills and chair rails, exclusively.”
“Where’s the manager and what are they doing?
Do they look exhausted or are they upbeat, helpful, and engaging with their staff?
Good managers tend to attract good staff which in turn leads to a good business.
Bad management does exactly the opposite.”
Usually, if the restrooms are dirty, so is the kitchen.
They seem to go hand-in-hand.”
40.“Flies.
Theyre attracted to spoiled food.
