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Each of us has specific standards for the quality and degree of service we want when going out to eat. However, just as the restaurant can have a variety of high-level qualities, there are some warning signs that can point to a poor eating experience or even serious health risks. Paying attention to details before and during the dining experience can help you spot warnings, which can be anything from bad food conditions to poor customer service or generally terrible food. Every time we go to a restaurant, we want to guarantee a safe and enjoyable dining experience by being aware of and avoiding these warning signs.
The red flags that indicate you are in not the best restaurant were recently discussed in this online group on Reddit. Here you can find 34 of the most liked ones we've gathered for you, and feel free to comment with your thoughts and the considerations you make when dining out!
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#1
Ethnic restaurant with no customers of that ethnicity in a town with a large population of that ethnicity.
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#2
If you smell freshly popped popcorn, but they don't serve popcorn, they have a cockroach infestation. The smell is the result of a potent insecticide and dead roaches.
#6
The restaurant isn't even busy but they take ages to serve you, and when they finally do they seem reluctant.
#7
If it smells like fish. Even fish-selling restaurants (the good ones) aren’t supposed to smell fishy. No pun intended.
#10
If it’s a restaurant that tries to act like it’s upscale and yet hires a bunch of teenagers to work in the kitchen or front of house. Speaking from personal experience as a past server.
#11
Very often the better the location, the worse the restaurant. If there’s an amazing view, they don’t need to make good food to fill tables.
#13
Lots of elderly diners = bland food Drain smell and/or fruit flies Staff seem stressed A really big menu usually means little of it is done well.
#16
In university I went out with some friends and they decided to go to mid-priced restaurant before we caught a film. I was really broke so I feigned not being hungry to excuse the fact that I couldn't order anything. As we were hanging out I noticed a cockroach crawl onto the table and quickly scurry out of sight. That is one of the few times I was happy to be poor.
#21
Windows are greasy. If they don’t clean the windows then how can I trust the kitchen is cleaned and the grease is handled properly?
#22
Years ago went to a "fancy" buffet. Kid in front of me sneezes...his height is such that he's below the glass fence thing. He was facing the food. We left, never will go to a buffet again. Not really a red flag...
#24
Not necessarily a "bad" restaurant, but more like "bad" circumstances... If you ever walk into a restaurant, and no one has their food, you should just leave. The kitchen is going down in flames, and you probably won't see your food for a long, long time.
#25
My big red flags are: it has less than 3.5 star reviews on google (seriously, anytime I don't follow this rule I get sick, or the food is awful), seeing that very few people have been served, filth anywhere (if I notice it), not seeing the server within 10 min after being seated, and too many flies.
#28
I worked at a pizza place for a few years. We made our sauce in house. I noticed that all the pizza places that just bought the sauce and didn’t make it themselves were significantly worse
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