- [Narrator] There's an old
saying that goes buyer beware, meaning that whenever you buy something, you're taking a big risk. Still, we aren't always aware of the risks when we buy stuff nowadays,
especially when it comes to food at both gourmet and fast food outlets. We trust that they know what they're doing and have our safety in mind. While most do, things
don't always go as planned. Here, then, are some
foods restaurant workers suggest we stay away from. (playful music) - Amazing! - [Narrator] The 8-Page Rule. Gordon Ramsay once said
that a restaurant menu shouldn't have more than four pages so that cooks can focus
on freshness and quality without getting overwhelmed
by too many items. According to other restaurant workers, the maximum should be eight. Why? Because if they have more than that, it means they have far too many items, which requires a whole load of ingredients that have to be stored,
sometimes for a long time. The only way to get orders to
customers quickly, therefore, is to precook the food,
then microwave or boil them in plastic bags when orders are made. So, depending on how much you care about taste and freshness,
stay away from restaurants with more than four pages of dishes. The Ingredients Rule. If you find something you like on a menu, don't order it right away,
do some due diligence. Say you want a beef sandwich. Before ordering it, first look
through the rest of the menu, and if you find another dish
that has beef, go for it. If no other menu item has
beef, then don't order it. When different dishes use the
same item, it'll go quickly, which forces the restaurant
to order more of it, guaranteeing freshness. If only one dish uses an ingredient, and there's not much demand for that dish, that ingredient can stay
in storage for a long time, meaning it could be stale
by the time you order it. McDonalds McCafe. McDonald's has been selling
ground coffee for years, and in September 2018, filed
a patent for its McCafe brand. However, According to several Reddit users claiming to have worked at
McDonald's throughout the US, this isn't a good idea. not because of the coffee beans, but because of the equipment. They never clean it. It's not that they don't want to, it's that it takes a
specialist to pull it apart so they can get in
there and clean it well. One employee said that, "All
McCafe beverages run through "a horrifically dirty machine. "We're talking five plus
inches of uncleaned, "liquid bull-shh making
up its inside parts." That's not the only gross
machine they have, apparently. In 2017, a branch in
Auckland, New Zealand, served 11-year-old Charlotte
Harris an ice cream with a complementary ingredient, a worm. They apologized after she
started screaming, of course, and said they'd investigate
the machine in question. McDonald's Food. There's also been reports of worms turning up in unexpected places. In October 2017, Jasper Lee ordered a McDonald's breakfast in Singapore. The branch clearly prides
itself on freshness because after a few bites, he discovered live worms
in his pork sausage patty. Andrea Calkins got something even fresher: fly larvae in her Filet-O-Fish back in June 2017, which she ordered from a Waterford
Township, Michigan branch. At around the same time Lee
was munching on his McWorm, Yasmine Batur found live
maggots in the Big Mac she ordered from a
Sydney, Australia branch, something a spokesperson denies, claiming that no living
thing could possibly survive the cooking process. Emmi McHugh of Queensland
found the same thing on a Cheeseburger Happy Meal
she ordered for her son, which McDonald's again denies, claiming that once food
leaves their property, they can't possibly vouch for it. Moving away from the downright gross, here's another tip from employees. Since McDonald's focuses on burgers, they tend to fly off the
grill so they won't lie around for a long time gathering dust. Not so for the chicken and fish. Apparently they cook a whole
batch at the start of the day, and if no one orders them, they can stay there for a long time. Elsewhere, their McRibs
look and taste delicious, but that's not how they
arrive at franchises. They instead come in pre-frozen and look like concrete blocks. Taco Bell's Meat. Taco Bell has received
its fair share of flack over the years, including
accusations that it puts sand in meat to give it texture
and that it uses only 36% beef and 64% mystery ingredients. Fortunately, we now know
that they use real meat, but what kind, exactly, is
another matter entirely. What each franchise receives
looks like gingerbread dough wrapped in plastic. Fortunately, it looks nothing like that as soon as they put it in their food. Subway's meats. According to a former employee, "the roast beef is so full of
preservatives it's iridescent, "super shiny and rainbow-like." The cold cuts are no better,
as they come in a syrup that allegedly smells like
that part of your anatomy where solid waste comes out of. As for the black forest ham,
it has "little piggy hairs "if you look close enough." According to someone who
worked there for two years, their tuna and seafood
used to come with labels claiming it didn't contain
dolphin or turtle meat. In 2012, however, the labels vanished. To be fair, that doesn't mean they now use dolphin or turtle meat. It just means that no one's
sure what they actually contain. Wendy's Chili. Several workers claim the
chili is far from fresh. So, how is it made? According to employees posting online, they collect the old,
dried up meat scraped from the grill top, including
meat that's expired. This is thrown into a fridge till they're ready to make chili. Done by chopping it up, adding
chili sauce, boiling it, and leaving it on the warmer. But doesn't it dry up, you ask? Of course, but they have a
simple, cost saving solution: Simply add more water. Baseball Park Hotdogs. According to a former hotdog employee, they come in perfectly fine, but that's where the problem begins. They're grilled then sold. As to what's left, they're
stored in the fridge before resale for several days. A former seller once insisted
on throwing out the water and hotdogs after two days
despite protests from management. So you're thinking, this
is just one stadium, right? Well, thanks to consolidation, not really. Almost all hotdogs sold throughout the US come from only a few
companies that have a monopoly on the market: Hillshire Brands Company,
Tyson Foods, and Sara Lee. It's also a given that many
of these top food brands pay stadiums to sell only their brands. That means most, if not all,
follow a similar system. Gas Station Slurpees. These may taste good,
but you could be risking more than just brain freeze. You could also come down
with something nasty, since they don't always clean them well. The result is mold, which
could potentially cause disease despite the low temperatures. Kobe Beef. Kobe is a place in Japan that produces the most expensive beef in the world. Cows are given beer and
sake, which is rice wine, to make them eat more to
produce the fine marbled fat that runs evenly throughout their meat. They're also massaged and made
to listen to classical music so they're relaxed and happy,
resulting in $50 burgers and steaks selling for up
to thousands of dollars. Problem was, they were all
fake because up until 2014, they were banned in the US. They were also banned in Europe till 2017, so there's a very good chance
that that expensive Kobe beef in that expensive restaurant
isn't really Kobe. In 2016 there were only nine restaurants that served authentic Kobe
beef in the United States, and while the list has grown slightly, it still isn't very common in the US and mostly served in high-end restaurants. Specials. According to Alberto Morreale, executive chef and owner
of Farmer's Bottega, a high end restaurant in San Diego, he'd never eat whatever
special a restaurant offers. Why? Because more often than not, those specials are what the restaurant is trying to get rid of. Morreale claims that
they're usually made up of ingredients that are about to expire, so they need to get rid of them quickly. As a result, they're offered cheaply, and sometimes combined with other offers to make them more attractive to diners. Oysters. According to Chef Mark Nichols,
owner of JC's Catering, a high-end business, oysters are a risky business
because they contain a number of harmful bacteria, like norovirus. He won't eat raw oysters from a restaurant if they're sourced from
over 160 kilometers away to ensure freshness. If the restaurant is near a
coast or has a good reputation for seafood, he'll consider it. If handled or stored improperly,
these delicious delicacies can apparently kill you, so it's best you proceed
with caution like he does. Complementary Bread and Snacks. Although some restaurants
serve their complementary bread fresh straight from the oven, not all do. It all depends on when that
bread comes out of the oven. Otherwise, that basket
of bread isn't fresh. If one table doesn't finish their share, they'll pop the remaining
bread into your basket. According to many chefs, it's pretty common for some
of the bread in your basket to have made their rounds
throughout the day. Which means that they could also be filled with complementary germs. The same goes for nuts and pretzels that are a staple of many cocktail bars. Most high end ones won't
leave them out in the open as high-end chefs don't want
diners losing their appetites before the main course. Those that have open bowls
full of complementary snacks are teaming with more than just salt, they're also teaming with germs. Just imagine how many random
hands have touched that bowl. And what isn't finished is set aside and used for the next
guests, or even the next day. House Salads. According to executive chef Kayson Chong, house salads are to be avoided. Not only do most use ingredients that you can pick up far
cheaper and make yourself, but they don't reflect
a chef's real talents. In other words, why pay a
premium when you go out to eat if you can eat far cheaper
by staying at home? Chong recommends appetizers and sides that do reflect a chef's
talent and ingenuity. Caviar. This delicacy is already expensive because it's becoming
rarer and rarer each day. According to chef Tim Carey, however, restaurants that serve them
mark them up even higher till they're no longer worth the cost. If you really do love caviar, save money and buy them
at retail stores instead, then spend what you save on
a really good restaurant. Just be sure to avoid
the caviar when you do. Ice. The food industry uses ice
as a way to save money. The more ice they include, the less actual drink they have to put in. Unfortunately, studies have shown that ice served at some well-known
outlets like McDonald's, Burger King, Starbucks, and KFC contain more bacteria than their toilets. Why? Because they clean and disinfect
their toilets regularly. Their ice machines are another matter, especially since they're harder to clean. It's also due to hygiene. Not all workers wash and
disinfect their hands and equipment regularly. Now, while I have painted
a depressing picture of the restaurants industry,
don't let that turn you off. Most do the best they
can and operate under strict food health and safety guidelines. Most of the time. Don't be discouraged from eating out, just be savvy with where you order from. That said, do you know of any other dishes that should have made this list? Let me know in the comments down below, and thanks for watching.
