Ex-Restaurant Employees Are Revealing The Menu Items And Behaviors They Avoid While Dining Out, And I'm Taking Notes

Working in the food service industry can be incredibly challenging.

Long hours on your feet can leave you physically exhausted while having to deal with customer complaints all night can be emotionally draining. By the end of your shift, you're left feeling completely worn out!

But along the way, servers have learned a thing or two about dining out. So, I asked former restaurant workers of the BuzzFeed Community, to reveal which menu items and practices they avoid when dining out, and here are the responses:

1."Never order seafood on a Monday. This is usually a kitchen getting rid of leftover portions from Friday and Saturday. Don’t order steak well done. Meat takes a very long time to cook this way, delaying the rest of your party from getting their food, and I’ve seen kitchen staff doing some not-so-great things with well-done meats. Most tea urns are FILTHY inside! If your tea is cloudy, it’s probably because of the dirty tea urn. Don’t make rude remarks to the waitstaff about food pricing. They have no control over this, and you should check average prices prior to arriving at the restaurant."

2."I ran a restaurant for a few years and can honestly say I wouldn't serve anything I wouldn't order if I were eating out anywhere else. Otherwise, what's the point? I think bad restaurants are pretty easy to spot, and most chain restaurants should be approached with caution."

—mitrofannorris

3."I never order random seafood in a restaurant that is neither a place known for seafood nor anywhere near a body of water where you can get seafood."

4."It’s not what I wouldn’t order, but how — never, ever claim an allergen you don’t have. If you don’t like something, let your server know, and it will simply be removed (if the recipe allows it). But an allergy is an entirely different matter — new knives, cookware, and plating. In an effort to not kill anyone, a kitchen will make all efforts to avoid cross-contact with an order. As more diners claim an allergy that isn’t real, dealing with allergies becomes an onus. The process remains the same, but resentment builds. It’s okay not to like things — you don’t need an excuse!"

5."Don’t order swordfish! The restaurant I worked at ordered swordfish for a Valentine’s Day special. The amount of worms that came out of those steaks as the chefs portioned them still haunts me to this day."

6."Pancakes. I once worked at a very fancy hotel; the chefs would make up the pancake batter the night before, put plastic wrap on it, and put it in the fridge. Every morning, the chefs were straining out the cockroaches. If there were too many of them, they just used an electric hand mixer and mixed them in."

7."I worked in a hospital kitchen that had rules in theory but never enforced them, making the kitchen hell for us workers, so there's a ton of things I would and wouldn't do if I'm ever eating while being a patient in a hospital. 1 — I would preorder food if possible. 2 — I would not order a ton of food at once for either myself or my guests. Patients would be 'starving,' but so much food was thrown away. And it's trifling to be a visitor expecting to be served at a hospital, and for free. There's usually a grocery store and restaurants near hospitals; hit up those before coming. 3 — I would NEVER ask why it's taking so long. Surprise, surprise, I'm not the only one in this 250-bed hospital ordering food."

8."I was a hostess at a large chain steakhouse about 15 years ago. Let me preface this by saying I still go there — I love the steaks, rolls, and baked potatoes. But the applesauce literally comes out of a huge can off the back of a Sysco truck, and the veggies are just steamed in the microwave. The mac and cheese on the kid's menu is also out of the microwave. The key to eating out is knowing that every restaurant shortcuts at least some things, and then specifically choosing the things they do in-house or make homemade."

9."Never order anything with avocados; almost every time, they've been frozen and just unthawed."

10."Former server and hostess here with a strong background in customer service. When I go to a restaurant, I always bus the table. Servers are BUSY (no pun intended), and leaving a messy table lets a server know you don’t respect them or their job. The other thing I do is get to know my server in the short time I’m there and address them by their name. Customers love being addressed by a first name, and so do customer service people. That being said, I will ask for a server’s section if I like them, and I also try to leave compliments about the server to managers. Compliments in customer service help with one’s mental health, and it’s also a major self-esteem boost to know that someone was happy with your service. Too often, we as consumers are too busy to take a few moments and notice good service."

11."Say NO to fruit garnish! I’ve worked in multiple establishments over the course of 12 years. I’ve seen it all. But I can say, without a doubt, the fruit on the side of your glass or in your drink is not sanitary. Even in fine dining establishments, it’s not likely that the fruit is cut daily. Also, a lot of times, freshly cut fruit is dumped on top of older fruit, contaminating all of it. We’re supposed to use bamboo sticks or tongs to pick up fruit, but the amount of times I’ve seen servers grab them with their fingers would scare anyone. Safest option: olives, which are kept in their brine."

12."I work at a comfort food chain restaurant, and even though everyone may seem nice, we're just normal people in the kitchen. I'm nice to you because it's my job and partially because people should just be nice to each other. The minute you start griping and complaining about the smallest issue, my brain has checked out, and I'm in danger mode. I either escalate the situation or pull the 'Would you like to speak to the manager?' line. I would never, ever be mean to wait staff of any kind. They're trying to do their job just like you do yours."

13."I never snap or clap for a server’s attention; that was the worst. Also, when asking if I can get you anything else, 'a million dollars would be nice,' or if you don’t see an item on the menu, 'must be free then.' Seriously, this is super annoying, and we’ve heard it from pretty much every table that day. Also, this is such a simple one, but I never get ice. The soda is cold from the machine, and ice means less drink."

14."I worked in a restaurant for over five years. I witnessed customers do so many rude and obnoxious things, sometimes repeatedly, that I would never do. For instance, as a patron, I would never arrive at a restaurant just before closing, ask to be seated, and take my time eating. You hold up the entire closing process so the servers, managers, and kitchen staff cannot leave until well after the end of their shift. If you need food and the restaurant is about to close, get the food to go and leave a big tip. Also, never, ever, EVER snap to get the server’s attention. And for god’s sake, stop calling female servers names like 'Sweetheart,' 'Honey,' or 'Sugar-Tits' (a name a customer legitimately called me)."

15."I used to work at a local burger joint, and now I will never touch any salt and pepper shaker without a napkin! You never know where people’s hands have been, and those are the same hands you’re using when you’re eating your burger."

16."I’d never argue with a staff member, server, bartender, hostess, etc. Always ask for a manager — that’s why they're there; to MANAGE situations. A lot of guests argue with the employees when they are literally just doing their job the way they were taught to do it, and some things are out of their control. If your burger came out rare, and you ordered it well, why are you taking it out on the server? They don’t cook it!! Call the manager! If it’s taking too long to be sat on a Friday night, why argue with the hostess? They can’t just throw people out. Talk to the manager, give them a chance to make it right — and be reasonable with your requests and expectations. No matter who you interact with, BE KIND TO RESTAURANT EMPLOYEES!"

17."I never get lemon with my drink. If they ask if I want one, I say no; if it has a photo of the drink with a lemon in it, I ask for no lemon. No server does the lemon side work, so it usually gets passed to the cooks or, frankly, one of us in the back of the house. I can't trust that the bartender washed their hands from money before touching the lemons, and I don't trust that those lemons weren't on a surface that still has liquid from raw meat on it. I've seen bartenders lick their hand to get, like, a flavored syrup off it before making someone a drink and not wash their hands in between, and half the time, your cook staff is high as a kite back there. No lemons for me."

What do you think of these tips? Would you still order a side of lemon in a restaurant? Let me know in the comments!

Note: Some submissions have been edited for length/clarity.