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30 Chain Restaurant Employees Share Industry Secrets Most Of The Customers Don’t Know About
From McDonald's golden arches to KFC's colonel, chain restaurants operate all around the world. However, there are still plenty of things we don't know about them—every business wants to get ahead of the competition, and to do so, they might try practices they want to keep on the down-low.
To gain a better understanding of the industry, we started digging around the internet and discovered a few discussions where people who worked at these establishments have been sharing insider secrets they learned on the job. Here are some of the most interesting ones.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Protip: When you ask your server for something, add "when you have a second". E.g. "Can I have a refill when you have a second?" 9 times out of 10 the basic human empathy you showed by acknowledging that you personally are not the centre of this very busy, very stressed worker's existence, will prompt them to put your needs as high up on their list as they can. It always worked on me. F*****g witchcraft.
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#2
I used to be a waiter and it wasn't my fault that it's taking forever for your food to come out. That's the kitchen's fault. Yelling at me won't make it come out any faster. You're just making me sad and ruining my night :( I'm a person too.
BeesEelsAndPups 8 months ago
Can't say that I have ever yelled at a waiter. However, I did once yell at a restaurant owner for yelling at my waitress. Or more specifically, for yelling at and firing my waitress for bringing her child to work. It was Sunday morning and the restaurant was empty except my GF and I, and the child. The child was sitting at a table coloring, she was probably 11, good kid. The owner/manager came out onto the floor while we were being served and started yelling at the waitress about the kid. She said her husband would pick up the kid in 30 minutes, and the owner fired her right in front of us. I said "the girl isn't bothering anyone, and to fire her mother in front of her like that shows an absolute lack of humanity. I will pay for what we've eaten, but I won't be coming back." The mom and girl left crying, the manager comped our meal but I never went back there.
#3
At Chipotle, the servers usually put more ingredients into the bowl version rather than the burrito version. However, you can ask for the wrap on the side when you order the bowl version for no extra cost. This way, you can make your own burrito with more ingredients for the same price.
#4
Worked at Red Lobster as a stocker. The biscuits are baked then brushed with an oily coating to give them most of their flavor. Also you have no idea how God d**n good those things are the second they're outta the oven.
#5
Not a restaurant, but we serve food too. The $7 tub of popcorn you buy at a movie theater costs about 9¢ to make.
FlamingZombies 8 months ago (edited)
This really isn't a secret. It's widely known that the margins on the movies themselves are almost nothing. It's the concession stand that makes the money for the theaters. Just like gas stations - the profit margins on the actual gas are miniscule. It's the people who guy inside and buy stuff that keep them afloat.
#6
How slippery floors in the kitchen can be, and how f*****g hot plates can be when running food. Forever more I will always tip my waitstaff well.
#7
Not a chain, but I work at a burger joint with a few locations around the area.
1) I can't do S**T about our prices. I'm a cashier, I don't decide the prices individually.
2) Nobody spits in food unless you're ordering at the trashiest restaurant in the most ghetto area of town. Not only would I not want that done to me, but if someone found out then I would get my a*s canned faster than you can say "horse testicles". We'll just complain about you out back.
Rachel Pelz 8 months ago
Tempted to say "horse testicles" as fast as I can for the rest of the day.
#8
Worked at Burger King in the 1990s. Aside from the half the crew being permanently s****d, there were no real shenanigans. We wouldn't serve anything that hit the ground, made most things to order, threw out old and stale s**t.
Hell, we even threw out the frozen meat we played frisbee with.
#9
I work at McDonald's. I'm f*****g sick of people asking me if I can make a suggestion that we should have the Big Tasty all year round, or that we should try and bring in a new type of McFlurry. I'm like 'Yeah, I'll just go give Ronald a call and let him know..'. The only person I can tell is my manager and he won't give a c**p.
#10
Former Starbucks employee here and here's a secret:
*No one cares if you don't like the price or the coffee.* They still make millions without you. Go be hipster someplace else.
#11
Panera is pretty much just as bad for you as McDonald's. People come in thinking they're eating healthy, but they're really not.
The Italian Combo used to have more than a thousand calories, but they took some stuff off so it's 980 now. All the soups have >1000mg of sodium (Italian Combo has >2000mg or a day's worth). A You Pick Two with Broccoli Cheddar, Frontega, and bread on the side is not significantly different from a McDouble with medium fries.
EDIT: And the "fresh-squeezed lemonade" is made from cartons of concentrate and regular old faucet water. Green tea is the same.
#12
The better question might be---who has worked at a restaurant and would still happily eat there? I used to work at Paragary's restaurants in Sacramento (for 3 years) and they are still one of my favourite places to eat. seems to me that is a mark of a good restaurant.
Pferdchen 8 months ago
Me. I worked at an Irish pub/restaurant for a while. The owner and his wife, both Irish, were there pretty much every day. The food was excellent. The husband made his money working the oil fields in Alaska before he started the restaurant. The place was was decked from ceiling down to the floor with nautical kitsch, which was appropriate because it was on a river with direct ocean access, heavily traveled by large yachts, which could tie up right in front. The funny thing is that the husband still dressed like a rough neck. He could wander around the restaurant all day and the customers would think he was the handyman. Absolutely none of that "I'm the owner" big head nonsense that is common here in S. Florida. "Just" a modest, friendly and soft-spoken gentleman.
#13
The "delivery fee" is not a tip that goes to delivery drivers.
#14
I work at a Papa John's and as you may know Papa John's brags about never frozen ingredients. Well, that's a big lie. Every time that we get a truck with food all the meats are frozen. The apple pie topping also comes frozen. The only things that don't come frozen are the dough and the vegetables.
#15
I also used to work at Applebees, and can confirm that steaks are microwaved. At the location I was at the cooks threw them on the grill after the microwave to get char marks on them. Seriously guys, don't order steaks there.
#16
I used to work at Romano's Macaroni Grill and their delicious Rosemary Herb Bread comes in frozen and is stored at room temperature. It must be loaded with a million kinds of preservatives to last sitting two weeks in a storage closet.
#17
The servers are in charge of making bread sticks at Olive Garden. I can't remember exactly how it worked but all the soup/salad/bread sticks were done by the servers. Two servers would usually be scheduled to be in charge of those things. I can't remember if the breadsticks were frozen or fresh...but I think they were fresh. As soon as they came out of the oven they were slathered in butter and salted, and they usually didn't last long. So chances are the breadsticks you get at Olive Garden are gonna be fresh and tasty. We were told that a table gets one bread stick per person and then one extra...this did not help curb massive consumption of bread sticks.
Once we had to throw out a bunch of old boxes...one of which I managed to take home. I ate bread sticks for at least a month...it was glorious.
#18
Don't eat at Golden Corral. Ever.
DON'T.
F*****G.
**EAT.**
***AT GOLDEN CORRAL***.
Zara VP 8 months ago (edited)
I visited this place once and witnessed something incredibly unhygienic and honestly just gross. A kid was dipping a dessert into the chocolate fountain, licking it, and then sticking it back in—over and over again. I saw it happen multiple times. I immediately let the manager know, expecting it to be addressed right away. I waited well over 30 minutes, and nothing was done. No one stopped the kid, and no one even spoke to the parents. That kind of behavior is unacceptable in a place that serves food to the public. Where were the parents? Why didn’t the staff take action? This isn’t just bad manners—it’s a health risk. Parents, please watch your children. Better yet, teach them how to behave properly in public spaces, especially restaurants. It’s not just about you—it affects everyone around you. Needless to say, never will eat there again! 🤢
#19
I worked at a Culver's a few years ago, and some people know, but I don't think many do, the burgers are fresh. They are portioned out hamburger, not pre-made patties. They take a cube of hamburger and press it on the grill as soon as you say you want a Butterburger. Also, chicken salad is made fresh every Wednesday morning.
So unlike Wendy's that says they have fresh, never frozen burgers (I find it hard to believe), Culver's actually does. And for those that don't know Culver's, it's a "fast food" burger/ice cream restaurant. After eating there for a year, I still am not sick of it.
#20
I work at Panera bread. Although the dough comes Pre-made from another place. Everything there is "as advertised". The leftovers get donated, and the managers are nice to the employees. As a company, Panera is probably one of the few that are honest.
#21
I work at mcdonalds: if you ever want to get fresh fries cooked hot for you order them with no salt. The normal fries can get old and if you order no salt then we have to make a new batch and not add salt. It will take 3 extra minutes but you will get freshass fries and you can salt them yourself.
#22
I used to work for Chick-Fil-A back in high school. Practically everything but the waffle fries and maybe the chicken salad (someone else confirm this) were made in the store. We breaded the chicken, we assembled the cool wraps, and I would cut countless boxes of fresh lemons, squeeze them in a machine and add sugar every shift. There is not a thing on the menu that I would not eat. Moreover, the employees would get to take home the cool wraps if there were any at the end of the night.
Aidan Pite 8 months ago
Yeah the whole time I was reading I was just like 'well this would sound real good if I had even the tiniest interest in stepping foot there...'
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Jrog 8 months ago (edited)
They push religious extremism propaganda and made significant donations to anti-LGBTQ hate groups. Their owner is the major founder of nationalist-christian and far right groups that fight against civil rights, equality and inclusiveness. They actively participated in Trump's campaign and fundraising.
Julie S 8 months ago
They opened a couple in the UK but they had so many protests that they shut them.
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MagicJacket 7 months ago
I bet if some people found out a restaurant or company was Hitler or Stalin loving back in the day, they would have been against them. Same thing here, basically. Just a matter of scale. Following every step of the fascism playbook so far.
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TheMFKNXerdo 8 months ago
Fvck chik fil-a and any hateful homophobic i******e who patronises them.
Michael Largey 8 months ago
Philosophical conundrum - can I boycott a restaurant where I wouldn’t eat anyway?
MagicJacket 7 months ago
I have never eaten there. There was never one around me when they first came out. Then I found out about not only the silly closed on Sundays thing, but the bigotry that comes with it. I can't imagine I am missing out in life by not eating at some fast food restaurant.
Christos Arvanitis 8 months ago
The chicken sandwiches are homophobic actually...
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Kevin Hickey 7 months ago
They were actually approved for thruway rest stops in New York State, and they're closed on Sundays. Dumbness.
Celtic Pirate Queen 7 months ago
It's not the food most people have a problem with. It's more the ignorant take on women's health care. They are self insured and as such they get to decide what is and is not covered by their policy. Viagra? Absolutely. Birth control? No way.
Miranda Prince 7 months ago
Too bad the owners hate gay people, because it sounds like the restaurants are pretty decent.
Billo66 8 months ago
I should add: Why can't I vote? I have a record from a paraphernalia charge in 2007. So, criminals can be elected, they just can't vote. Don't ask me, I just live here.
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#23
Chipotle's deep, dark secret... It's 50/50 lemon lime juice in the rice. Oh no! Seriously, that place was above-board all around.
#24
I guess this is the opposite of a secret I wish everyone knew. It's a truth I wish more people understood. There is no "Secret Menu" at Starbucks. There is no recipe for drinks called a Clint Eastwood, Undertow, Tear Drop, Tuxedo, Bloody Tuxedo, or my most recent favorite "Butter Beer." Ordering these drinks makes you look like a d****e and you've got a good chance of getting decaf from your annoyed barista. If you want one of these drinks, just order it by ingredient.
Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa) 8 months ago (edited)
Are they censoring d****e now? EDIT: Yep apparently they are.
#25
Former Domino's Employee here. Something that I didn't realize was that your delivery driver gets paid $3.15 an hour for all the time spent on the road. Please tip well. They do not get reimbursed for gas and are using their personal cars. If your pizza was late, it is much, much more likely that it was the manager's fault (the managers are the only ones allowed to make the pizzas). You work s****y hours and there is absolutely no way you are getting a Friday or Saturday night off because that's when everyone wants pizza. They will most likely be working from 5 PM to 2 or 3 AM on those nights and then if you're opening the store on Sunday, you'll be back at 11 AM. Domino's isn't even good.
Emilu 8 months ago (edited)
Ugh. I wish $hitty pay like that was illegal. I'd have to look it up to be sure but I think our base wages for delivery would be around $15-$18 an hour. Yes, the Aussie dollar sucks at the moment, but at least workers don't need to rely on the good graces (or otherwise) of customers. For the record, if my delivery driver goes above and beyond I will always tip them, even though I know they get a livable wage. And tip them in person! Make sure it goes to them!!
#26
Chili's
The molten cake that everyone seems to love is frozen. The paradise pie is frozen. If you complain that your food isn't hot enough, it just goes into the microwave. Oh, and people used to ask for the queso recipe all the time...it's delivered to the restaurant in a bag. The cooks would just heat it up and dump it in a skillet.
When the dishes came out of wash, there would still be wet lettuce and food particles stuck on the plates and silverware, and we'd just wipe it off. Makes me want to use plastic ware at every restaurant now.
Most of these things probably aren't secrets though.
#27
Employees at Chuck E. Cheese use the same towels to clean the arcade games as they do tables. Also, the tubes that your children crawl in are usually only cleaned once a month, if that. Don't take your kids to Chuck E. Cheese. (former employee).
Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa) 8 months ago (edited)
And keep them the hell out of the ball pit. God only knows what's down there. If I needed to hide a body for a while, a Chuck E. Cheese ball pit might not be the worst place.
#28
When you complain that the coffee isn't fresh, we take your cup, add hot water to it, and give it back to you. no one has ever been able to tell the difference and usually go on about how much better it tastes now.
#29
Any employees from IHOP here? That place always seemed really shadey...
Once, I ordered a BLT and found a piece of banana under the sandwich. I'm guessing they really don't clean their plates, either.
#30
I worked at Subway until this afternoon. I will say that the food is surprisingly very fresh- we sliced all the vegetables other than olives and jalepenos on location, the bread was fresh-baked daily, the meat came in frozen bags but was otherwise not-nasty. Super clean, fresh place.
That said, the managers are money-hounding, condescending, sneery a******s that insist your work schedule come before your school schedule. They expect you to be available every f****n day and if you can't do that, you're fired. Screw that!
EDIT: I would eat at Subway every day if I had to- it's all real fresh, clean, and pretty healthy given the alternates. But I wouldn't work there ever again.
Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa) 8 months ago
Depends on the Subway these days. The one near my old place was pretty good but the one where I live now is hot garbage.
#31
I worked at Raising Cane's, and the chicken was never frozen, marinated, and hand battered and fried to order. The toast you can order buttered on both sides, and you can substitute just about anything for anything. They would shell out for the best longest french fries of the cut, usually getting 3-4 fires per potato, but they would get broken frozen in the bag so I didn't see the point. It was insanely clean in the kitchen too, you could do surgery in the kitchen after we left at night.
john doe 8 months ago
I hate that place they have 2 things on the menu and one type of sauce, one opened in my town a few years ago, my wife and I went I asked for honey mustard and they were like we only have cains sauce, I couldn't believe they don't have at least a couple options. Their chicken was fine but the same as every other chicken joint.
#32
I worked in a kitchen for a summer and here's what I learned: don't eat from a salad bar! Don't do it! The toppings (chickpeas, tofu, carrots, etc) that aren't used one day are just put in the fridge in the salad bar container and re-used every day until they run out... you could be eating weeks old, slimy chickpeas if a lot of people haven't been eating them.
Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa) 8 months ago
Bro, I'm from Oregon. I grew up hearing about the Rashneeshs and their attempt to poison salad bars in The Dalles to rig an election. That's a wild story.
#33
McDonalds for 5 years. When you're trained they encourage you to look for "golden moments", which are essentially targetting children and making them feel special.
Ron Man 8 months ago
Yeah, people don't realize this. McDonalds tries to be 'special' to kids, which is why they used to have the games, playground, etc. They know that if they get a kid to like them, that kid is likely to be a lifelong customer and eventually pass those good feelings onto their own kids.
#34
I worked at Starbucks for a while. Overall, everything was really clean and fresh. I got to take home "expired" foods at the end of the night because they had really strict expiration rules, and "expired" food wouldn't really expire for another few days.
BUT here's a tip: If you're EVER a d**k at Starbucks, you will get decaffed or sugar-freed or non-fatted. I always felt like an evil mastermind when someone ordered their quad venti seven pump mocha because I would decaff all four shots and only give them THE RECOMMENDED AMOUNT OF PUMPS!! MUAHAHA
Edit: Apparently I wasn't clear that I would only do this to people that were being very rude to me for no reason except that their over-priced mediocre coffee drinks are more important to them than treating people in the service industry like human beings.
I also guess I will specify that
-I worked in a "rich" community Starbucks, so I encountered more d***s than the average barista
-I would never, under any circumstances, do the opposite, ie. caffeinating or sugaring or whole-ing someone's drink, in case of medical issues. I hated the rude customers, but I don't want to be responsible for someone's diabetic coma or pacemaker going wacko.
Kristin 8 months ago
I live a block away from my local starbucks and I used to go daily until I found out I'm diabetic and stopped going as frequently but the people who worked there when I was there daily were AMAZING!! as soon as I'd start talking at the drive thru, they would say "hi Kris, we got your drink going already" I loved they knew my name, they always were so kind. During Christmas I'd take in some gifts for the morning crew. Unfortunately, none of the sane crew is there cause alot were college kids and went on to better opportunity's
#35
I worked at taco bell in the mid-nineties. The beans were dehydrated and in plastic bags like coco pebbles cereal. There were always two big pots of hot water. One pot was to add water to the beans, and the other pot was for heating the bags of ground beef, chicken, and steak. Also, I worked the closing shift. When we closed the lobby, we'd get beer and put the bottles in the ice machine. We paid for the beer by making up prices at the register and never ringing it up. When we had enough for beer we'd operate normally again. I never saw anyone do anything to the food.
I still eat taco bell.
#36
So, I have a friend who works at 5 guys, which is one of the top fastest growing restaurants in the US in the last few years. I have had heard the most awful stories about how they treat their "managers" as in make them work > 50 hours a week with wages barely 10-20% higher than minimum wage, with 0 benefits, 0 vacation days, 0 bonuses, and the entire time, they are told that they are next in line for promotion. My friend has been there for almost 2.5 years with a total of approximately a 10% pay increase over that entire time with no promotion. It's too hard for me to explain all rest of the details of the stories i've heard, but basically they are able to make tons and tons of money by treating their middle management and lower employees like garbage, and giving them the opportunity to quit if they feel that they are being treated unfairly. I know a lot of places do this, but it still doesn't make it ok. Anyone else have a similar experience with them?
Anony Mouse 8 months ago
The last time I was there (during pandemic when we were all feeling fairly generous toward front line workers) when the “add a tip” came up on screen the highest amount I could choose was 10%. I was prepared to go 20% - even for carry out due to the circumstances and his busy it was. I suggested the cashier tell her manager there was a bug in the software and threw a couple bucks extra into the tip jar. (Please don’t start yet another pointless conversation about tipping culture. It’s boring and it’s not a problem anyone is going to solve with comments on a humor site.).
#37
I used to work at subway. My manager at the time was really conscious of food costs...to a fault. Most commonly was changing the expiration dates of food so it wouldn't have to be thrown out. This may not be a huge deal for a couple days, but food would last a couple WEEKS. He would also take lettuce in a pan and put it back into the bag.
Finally, he kept frozen (unbaked) bread for over a year. It was so old that the yeast had died, causing the bread to not rise. He was fired after I got fed up and blew the whistle to the franchise owner.
#38
Just started working at Starbucks. I accidentally brewed decaf instead of regular. After fixing the problem, I notified the girl training me that I wasted two scoops of the decaf and she laughed and said, "You should have just left it. I do that all the time -- on purpose. The customers can't tell the difference."
:/.
Bored Trash Panda 7 months ago
The migraine I would get from lack of caffeine if it were my first cup of the day would prove you wrong...
#39
Used to work at red lobster, the biscuits are dry mix- mixed with water and shredded cheese. Then brushed with garlic butter. They are fattening as s**t. But still delicious. **After reading the Olive Garden breadstick comment, I feel compelled to add that usually the batches are hot and fresh, but in a weirdly shaped warmer that would be hard to grab with bare hands. So don't worry about dirty server hands on your biscuits, everyone used tongs at our restaurant.
Also, surprisingly, Crab legs/Lobster are very healthy if you don't slather it with butter. And the crab legs are usually excellent condition. Something about how they get a good pick from their source. I served maybe one pair of yucky looking crab legs and it was only because of the barnacle thingies on the outside. Which btw, you crabby heads, doesn't affect the inside meat really at all. It's still amazingly delicious.
Oh I forgot: All the "fresh" fish in our area (Near Chicago... thousands of miles from any f*****g ocean) is flash frozen, not fresh. That's b******t. But for some reason frozen and fresh frozen are different.. don't know why exactly. Exceptions are made for a few fish, but all the salmon,mahi, etc... frozen.
And their "wood grill" was the exact same grill as before except some smoked woodchips are added to the bottom to allow some smoke to get up into the food. They act like they throw chunks of cedar into a wood fire place in the commercials.
Janos Schumacher 8 months ago
Ocean fish is generally flash frozen on the boat with dry ice. If you want fresh fish, you buy it at the dock from someone that caught it a few hours ago. Otherwise, it goes in the hold and is frozen solid. Don't worry about it. Freezing doesn't hurt it. Yes, eating a fish while the head is still mad at you is great, but it's not necessary.
#40
I worked at a "local chain" and they prided themselves on making everything from scratch with fresh ingredients. Many things came from cans and the most cringeworthy was their summer lobster dishes made with pre cooked, shelled, and frozen lobster.
#41
Not quite a chain per se but I worked at a packing house that grows tomatoes for the vast majority of all fast food restaurants on the east coast. I've seen what happens in the fields they're grown in. Long story short I don't get tomatoes on my sandwiches anymore.
#42
Might have just been the buffalo wild wings that i worked at, but dont order anything thats on an actual plate. Nobody wants to wash that s**t so we would always just kinda spray it off for half a second then put it in the clean pile.
#43
Well, I have a good one....
If you have ever eaten at Outback Steakhouse they give you this awesome honeywheat bread with some butter. The bread is amazing itself but if you ask for a side of ranch and dip the bread in it...... It is the best m***********g thing in the world. I used to eat a loaf or two when we had a few mins between the rushes. To this day, I always ask for ranch with my bread there.
#44
I work at Panera Bread. Please don't order anything besides bread and pastries. They are the only things made fresh on a daily basis. The sandwich ingredients are always old or expired. When we find that something has passed its date, we simply switch the date to the next day, and the next and the next. The prep stations get cleaned maybe once or twice a week, the rest of the time they get wiped down with the same dirty rag I washed them with yesterday. The food all gets mixed together, there's Caesar dressing had chipotle mayo in it, and the horseradish has some olives dropped in there, I have no idea if this is turkey or chicken, but it's leaking and smelly and it's going on your sandwich. The soup comes in bags, that get heated, frozen, reheated until they're empty. It films over on a hourly basis, and we just add hot water to them and mix it up. It's really gross.
#45
I know that at Pizza Hut Express, they throw out unpurchased pizzas every 20 minutes. Since I thought this was such a food waste, I would stockpile them on days my manager wasnt working and take them home. Hell, I'll eat pizza thats been sitting out for days.
#46
Pizza Hut secrets:
The only fresh veggies are tomatoes, green peppers, and red onions. Everything else comes from cans/ prepackaged bags.
The only pizza dough that isn't saturated in oil is hand tossed dough. The Edge/ Original Pan dough is made with excessive amounts of oil. I make pizza dough at home and I know you can make it with 1/10th the oil.
The dough is not prepared daily. If there is left over dough from the previous day, it will be used the following day. If you've ever eaten a Pizza Hut pizza and felt the dough was thicker than usual, you've eaten day old dough.
Ham, Black Olives and Salami are the three least used ingredients in Pizza Hut pizza's. Avoid ordering pizzas with these ingredients because they are most likely going bad and haven't been changed in quite some time.
The "natural pizza sauce" or whatever b******t they tell you comes from a bag. We mix it with tap water till it's a pizza sauce worthy consistency and keep it stored in an industrial sized bucket in the walk-in freezer.
The oil in the Wing Street fryers are changed upon managerial request, usually based on the color and consistency of the oil. If it can be used for another weekend it will be. It will be topped up with fresh oil when needed, but the oil is rarely changed over completely. Knowing that, consider the amount of potentially spoiled meat products that have been sitting in the same oil that fried up your chicken wings/ tatter tots and mozza sticks.
Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa) 8 months ago
Finally! i've been waiting for one from the Hut. I can confirm the pan dough is super oily. One pump for a small pan and two for a large. I worked at an old Red Roof so we had a salad bar and beer and wine as well. The Hand Tossed is legit but we always made too much so I would end up dumping a 50g trashcan of over proofed dough a few times a week. So wasteful.
#47
Worked at Wawa for ~4 years. Management is incredibly a**l about cleanliness, "freshness" of food (you will never get something that's been "sitting out," I promise), full stock and getting you in and out as quickly and happily as possible. A challenge to work for at times and was definitely not paid enough for the work I put in, but at least the company wasn't full of scumbags.
I will say that in order to get fresher meat/cheese on your sandwich, request that they use meat/cheese that's available from the deli so they cut it fresh. It's a pain in the a*s and I can't guarantee that the deli attendant won't hate you for it, but it will be a g*****n delicious sandwich.
#48
Chipotle has the highest standards I have ever seen. I'm excited to work for them again. They are the clean. Organic and local when in season. As cruelty free as they can be. They are even trying to change laws to help animals get better treatment. The place I worked at didn't use any food from the day before. They have the best atmosphere and business model.
#49
Worked at Crakcer Barrell about 8 years ago. Like most chains all the meat came frozen. All the soups also came frozen and were boiled in their plastic bag which sketched m out. On the flip side mash potatoes and mac and cheese were made from scratch and were a pain in the a*s to make in large batches.
Dl B 8 months ago
I was hoping someone would menion Cracker Barrel. I refuse to eat there. One time I order chicken strips and they were not done. Flour was falling off them. The next time I ordered creamed chicken over biscuits. The creamed chicken was obviously canned and microwaved. Never again.
#50
As a manager of a restaurant; don't be a f****n d**k. Reason with each other.
Sometimes a get customers whom you can tell they are just stressed out and the waiter/counter person is the best option to blow off steam on.
One important thing I try to do is keep the restaurant as friendly as possible but sometimes we get these snobby a******s who just k**l the mood.
#51
I was a shift manager at a Pizza Hut when I was in college, and I would still eat there. The general manager took cleanliness seriously, and we followed the rules quite closely.
In regards to the salad bar, most items from the previous day would be kept on the salad bar, but each container was changed out in the morning. You would put enough of the fresh item in to make a full container then dump the older stuff on top. If the items from the previous day were slimy or no longer good, you threw them away. You weren't expected to put out shabby or old product. Items we knew wouldn't get used in the day wouldn't get filled all the way.
The produce for both the pizzas and the salad bar were cut fresh daily. We would often cut more in the late afternoon, and some of that would carry over to the next day to get us started. I never saw anything served that shouldn't have been.
The pan pizza dough was made fresh every day. The breadsticks and all other pizza dough come in frozen. They actually changed over to frozen stuffed crust pizza while I was working there. It was better when it was fresh, but it went largely unnoticed. Now, I wouldn't be able to tell the difference.
The Pizza Hut I worked at was safe; I can't speak as to any of the others. I know that I've gotten bad pizza from other Pizza Huts. When it happens, I usually just let it go. Occasionally, if it is bad enough, I'll call them on it. When I worked for them, the worst thing you could do was call the number on the box, as it generated a complaint that higher ups saw. We handled all our complaints in house in an attempt to never give customers cause to call the number on the box. I've used that knowledge to my benefit when necessary.
#52
I've worked in many and the thing that gets me the most is the fruit for beverages. Lemons lime oranges all that never never put them all the way into your drink. For instance, they are rarely washed before they are cut and 90% of the time are handled with bare hands by the staff. Trust me, if ya want it, squeeze it in and throw it away.
#53
Chili's:
They took out the grill in the kitchen, even though many items have "grill marks."
They cook everything in an oven and steaks are made on a flattop.
Best part:
recently decided that bartenders don't make signature drinks anymore. the day time bartender makes huge batches of the signature drinks and at night I'm required to pour this premade concoction for dining room guest.
That's when I decided to quit.
#54
Papa John's driver here. A cheese pizza dipped in garlic sauce is the same exact thing as a cheese stick dipped in marinara sauce, only it costs about twice as much. If you get cheese pizzas, and dip them in the garlic sauce, just start asking for cheese sticks with two pizza sauces, you'll save yourself some money.
#55
I worked at a Tim Horton's all through high school and a bit of University. The "Always Fresh" stuff is kind of bull s**t. Everything is frozen, and re-heated when they need to be served. The doughnuts, the eggs in the breakfast sandwich, and any baked good was all frozen, put in the oven and then served.
My location, however, was strict about the "20 minute" rule on our pots of coffee.
#56
I work at bk (the king), thee grossest thing I've ever seen happen in my store is something a customer did. Midway through this ladies meal she decides her babies diaper is full. So she changes it. On the f*****g table. Right next to her food. And as the baby is lying in ketchup she proceeds to shove French fries down her grotesque gullet.
#57
I just learned yesterday that if you order something that comes with dressing at Arby's, they'll ask you if you want Honey Mustard or Barbecue. If you want Ranch, you have to specifically ask for it or they won't tell you that they have it. The logic behind this is that Ranch is more expensive than the other two options.
Not ground-breaking, but I'm glad I asked her.
#58
In 2008 I had a job at a Food Avenue in Target. One day my dad went into the hospital, and since I wasn't allowed to take calls while at work, I spent the day not knowing what was going on.
I sobbed into your pizzas. I sobbed and sobbed and sobbed. All over those pizzas.
So, if you had an extra salty pizza from a Target in South Florida in 2008, it was because you were eating my tears.
#59
I worked at a BWW for a while. If you go to one and order food when the bar is only open...well, just don't. The food is just cooked in a microwave at that point.
There are also many hands touching the food to make sure it is still "hot" (and if it isn't, it's just microwaved for a short amount of time) before it is taken to a table. If you wait a really long time for your food, I would complain about it and send it back to make sure you have a fresh dish.
Me 7 months ago
I worked at a large chain restaurant as a hostess. We all worked 6 hour shifts and were not allowed any breaks. When the servers got hungry, they would eat some of the food off the plates before taking the plate to the table. Usually fries or fried clams/shrimp. After working there, I would never eat there.
What do you think ?
Gwyn 8 months ago
A lot of people on here complaining about things being frozen but honestly, there are some things that you probably WANT to be shipped frozen to reduce the chances of spoilage or bacterial growth especially on things like meats. Any chain restaurant is going to preserve or freeze much of the food because of the time required to ship and store. If you want to make sure it's fresh, make it at home.
Ron Man 8 months ago
No, what you actually want is fresh meat sourced locally so that it doesn't need to be frozen and shipped across the country.
Load More Replies...
Hippopotamuses 8 months ago
We only have a fraction of the franchises mentioned in this article in New Zealand. But the same rules apply. Put people on minimum wage, with no prospects for career development, and treat them like shīt, what the hēll do you expect?
Seadog 7 months ago
Made from scratch biscuits. There's not a fast food restaurant anywhere in the US, probably not a restaurant of any kind in the US that makes biscuits from scratch. I'd bet there's not even an employee of any restaurant in the US that even knows how to make biscuits from scratch. I haven't even met anyone that knows how since the early 70's. It is 100% false advertising. And there needs to be a law that says the food they serve MUST look like what they advertise and/or show on the menu. These big loaded sandwiches they show would make at least 3 of what they actually sell. And last but not least, nutrition labels. They are completely useless. They do not tell you what is in a normal serving, they take the results they want and reduce the serving to fit the parameters. The only thing I know of with realistic portions is Sara Lee Cheese Cake. The box says number of servings: 3. That is very realistic.
Kohl_Keene 8 months ago
I worked at a movie theater concession stand. The popcorn flavoring came to us in huge vats of a Crisco lard type-which was then heated/liquefied and placed in the butter dispensers. Yum!
Dl B 8 months ago
You can buy the same popcorn seasoning they use in theaters at Amazon. It is quite good especially if you mix it with lots of butter
Load More Replies...
Rick Murray 8 months ago
So many chains I've never heard of on this side of the ocean - I only know of Wawa because they advertise on WZBA that I sometimes listen to via streaming.
SweetCheesySpaghetti 8 months ago
Please don't order the soup from Cheesecake Factory. It's kept on the line with the dirty dishes and garbage cans... people constantly reaching over it and dropping things in it by accident. And all day every day, employees are dipping into it.
Sarah 8 months ago
Coincidentally, I just read this in the Daily Mail https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14586871/Chinese-restaurant-shut-roast-duck-dead-street-pigeons.html
Annik Perrot 8 months ago
Phhheeeew! Except for Domino's, we have none of those chains here. Dodged several bullets by the sound of it.
Mike F 8 months ago
You can have them on every corner, but do you patronize them? Do you seriously eat out that often that this list would make a difference? I was a driver for years and RARELY ever went to a fast food place for anything other than using the restroom. No matter where you choose to eat (outside of your home) it's a cr@p shoot. There's virtually no difference between your local BK and Vinny Hooha's fine dining because you are trusting them to be perfectly clean and using only the freshest ingredients. It ain't that way. You don't climb into a taxi and tell the driver to move over so you can drive. And, Papa Pacelli's is just as liable to be grody inside as any place else. Ya pays your money and ya take your chances.
Load More Replies...
Gwyn 8 months ago
A lot of people on here complaining about things being frozen but honestly, there are some things that you probably WANT to be shipped frozen to reduce the chances of spoilage or bacterial growth especially on things like meats. Any chain restaurant is going to preserve or freeze much of the food because of the time required to ship and store. If you want to make sure it's fresh, make it at home.
Ron Man 8 months ago
No, what you actually want is fresh meat sourced locally so that it doesn't need to be frozen and shipped across the country.
Load More Replies... Hippopotamuses 8 months ago
We only have a fraction of the franchises mentioned in this article in New Zealand. But the same rules apply. Put people on minimum wage, with no prospects for career development, and treat them like shīt, what the hēll do you expect?
Seadog 7 months ago
Made from scratch biscuits. There's not a fast food restaurant anywhere in the US, probably not a restaurant of any kind in the US that makes biscuits from scratch. I'd bet there's not even an employee of any restaurant in the US that even knows how to make biscuits from scratch. I haven't even met anyone that knows how since the early 70's. It is 100% false advertising. And there needs to be a law that says the food they serve MUST look like what they advertise and/or show on the menu. These big loaded sandwiches they show would make at least 3 of what they actually sell. And last but not least, nutrition labels. They are completely useless. They do not tell you what is in a normal serving, they take the results they want and reduce the serving to fit the parameters. The only thing I know of with realistic portions is Sara Lee Cheese Cake. The box says number of servings: 3. That is very realistic.
Kohl_Keene 8 months ago
I worked at a movie theater concession stand. The popcorn flavoring came to us in huge vats of a Crisco lard type-which was then heated/liquefied and placed in the butter dispensers. Yum!
Dl B 8 months ago
You can buy the same popcorn seasoning they use in theaters at Amazon. It is quite good especially if you mix it with lots of butter
Load More Replies... Rick Murray 8 months ago
So many chains I've never heard of on this side of the ocean - I only know of Wawa because they advertise on WZBA that I sometimes listen to via streaming.
SweetCheesySpaghetti 8 months ago
Please don't order the soup from Cheesecake Factory. It's kept on the line with the dirty dishes and garbage cans... people constantly reaching over it and dropping things in it by accident. And all day every day, employees are dipping into it.
Sarah 8 months ago
Coincidentally, I just read this in the Daily Mail https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14586871/Chinese-restaurant-shut-roast-duck-dead-street-pigeons.html
Annik Perrot 8 months ago
Phhheeeew! Except for Domino's, we have none of those chains here. Dodged several bullets by the sound of it.
Mike F 8 months ago
You can have them on every corner, but do you patronize them? Do you seriously eat out that often that this list would make a difference? I was a driver for years and RARELY ever went to a fast food place for anything other than using the restroom. No matter where you choose to eat (outside of your home) it's a cr@p shoot. There's virtually no difference between your local BK and Vinny Hooha's fine dining because you are trusting them to be perfectly clean and using only the freshest ingredients. It ain't that way. You don't climb into a taxi and tell the driver to move over so you can drive. And, Papa Pacelli's is just as liable to be grody inside as any place else. Ya pays your money and ya take your chances.
Load More Replies... 
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