To miss the cleanliness of the pandemic when eating out?

[Monkeytrousers04]

I’ve just been to a kid-friendly pub for tea. We were invited there by two other families we know who go there all the time. I knew it wasn’t going to be the most up-market place after looking at the website but did not expect the filth I encountered when we got there!

The table had a a decorative ridge carved into it, about 3ins in from the outside and all around the whole table but the whole thing was full of old bits of food - crumbs, salt/ pepper, general dirt - AIBU to think this should be cleaned after each sitting?

I’m genuinely curious because the people we were with did not seem bothered in the slightest… the chairs were all sunken when you sat on them too and had these grubby covers on them that were also covered in bits of food, squashed in from people having sat on them throughout the day. I didn’t notice until after I’d sat down and I pulled out the chair next to me for my son to sit on. He’s three and was not bothered in the slightest but then all I kept thinking about was “what am I sitting on?” and “I’ll have to take these jeans off (and put them in the wash) before I sit on the sofa when we get home”. Again, is this weird? AIBU to think these things?

I’ve always been a bit OCD on the cleanliness front so found eating out during the pandemic amazing as everything was so clean. I really miss this aspect of it. Why has it not been upheld in most places?! We now all know so much about how germs are passed on, etc. etc. and types of surfaces that hold on to germs/ bacteria more than others - why have some places and people just forgotten about this and why do I feel like I’m the odd one out for not wanting to eat my dinner off a table that still has the remnants of at least today’s customer’s dinners, if not more, on it?!

AIBU or am I just overly sensitive to this stuff?

I have other examples from other eateries I’ve been to too recently - sticky tables, stained chairs, dirty cutlery, etc. and sometimes I’ll complain and get the waiting staff to wipe the table again, etc. but then I start to wonder whether it’s a clean cloth they are using or whether it’s the same one they’ve been using all day?!

I worked in a pub when I was at uni and the chef there was so clean (she ended up retraining as an environmental health officer in the end in an attempt to clean up all the pubs/ restaurants in our city) so perhaps I’ve been a bit over exposed to how things should be done in a pub/ restaurant setting. It was a busy student pub I worked at and we were generally run off our feet, but I would always clean my tables between customers and if I saw something on a chair or the floor nearby would clean that up to. (I’m not even going to mention the floor of the place we we’re at today).

Anyway, just wondered if anyone else ever feels sick when they eat out due to the dirt and detritus on/ around the table, or if it’s just me?

Lots of places are short staffed at the minute. That's probably the reason.

We went for coffee at the weekend, people in front asked for ice with their drinks. The young girl got a bag full from freezer and scooped out handfuls into each cup . Pre Covid or post Covid that's just not nice.

Going to offer some more perspective from the other side:

I work in a restaurant that is part of a large company. We simply don't have the time to clean every single table to perfection apart a quick wipe, otherwise guests will experience delays in their service. It's the same with the floor. We have the time to get the large bits but don't have the time to ensure perfection.

Regarding cloths, we use reusuable cloths. These are changed daily. They're soaked in the cleaning chemicals after a few uses because we spray a lot of it onto tables.

The sticky table from my experience is because we're still using the sanitiser spray we used during covid and that leaves a sticky residue.

So yes, staffing issues really for the large part.

You can't 'be a bit OCD' any more than you can 'be a bit chickenpox'.

Aside from that, I haven't really found this so I've obviously been lucky, although it's noticeable that everything takes slightly longer than it used to and I'd put that down to staff shortages.

Thanks for the comments. I was really just wondering if people are bothered by this stuff rather than the reasons behind it… I used to have OCD but had therapy to help me manage it - so perhaps “recovering” is a better phrase to use rather than “a bit”.

Stuff like this really triggers me so I was more curious to find out other peoples views - if other people are horrified by stuff like this then maybe it’s not my OCD pushing through…

I know staff shortages are rife at the moment and I sympathise for the staff I really do - which is why I rarely say anything. My own team (not food sector related) is running on 50% capacity and has been for over a year and it has taken its toll on me and my colleagues. :-(

Yy I'm the same. I loved when food preparation staff wore masks and gloves too.

Ugh I don't think tables and chairs should have areas where crap can build up.

Randomly for other reasons in a non cafe /restaurant setting I have been musing about shit design, in my case a kitchen in a holiday let - similarly with a decorative groove the counter tops which are a right pain when prepping food causes crumbs etc, who designs this crap!

I think it depends on where you are dining.

Somewhere like Harvester (cheap and cheerful) I’d expect a somewhat grubby surroundings and food of questionable quality. That said, I’d probably find cheerful staff and reasonable loos (you get what you pay for). Harvester and you are now talking at least £16 a head to include an ice cream sundae. Probably £80 for a meal for 4 plus soft drinks and desserts.

‘Naice’ pubs will be £20-25 a head. You’ll probably get your chips in a mini fryer basket and your burger might be served on a banana leaf (boak). Here, you’ll expect the tables etc to be very clean and toilets pristine. Cheerful atmosphere etc and much politeness (you might be slightly on edge if you are a joker). .However, you won’t be able to afford the £12 desserts and will end up at the McDs drive through for a McFlurry on the way home. Probably £120 for a family of four with soft drinks and excluding desserts- add another tenner for your McFlurrys on the way home.

I've noticed standards are the poorest that I've ever known, and I've put it down to lack of staff and a background of rising costs.

I've come to the conclusion that my choice is to not go out to eat or eat out ££££ where staff are looked after and paid well.

I can imagine in some places lack of staff is a real safety issue both for staff and customers. There are people with allergies, or risk of transmission of infection.

Lack of good, trained management staff plus rising costs is a real risk.

I don’t like the way grubby restaurants look or smell, and I would be a bit pissed off if I sat on a chip that stained my jeans but on the whole, no, I wouldn’t worry about it or feel sick. I have a fully functioning immune system which takes care of all these things for me. I am not aware of any illnesses that can be transmitted by sitting, fully clothed, on a grubby chair then sitting on a sofa at home in the same clothes. i would avoid food that tasted dodgy or hasn’t been reheated properly, but that’s about it.

We simply don't have the time to clean every single table to perfection apart a quick wipe, otherwise guests will experience delays in their service.

Hmm. I dunno. I don't understand why employees don't carry a spray and cloth in their belt or apron. Why do they clear a table but leave it full of crumbs and mess. And then come to take your order. Then go to find a cloth. Then wipe - often just sweeping the crumbs onto the floor I mean, why? Then leave. Is there no time and motion study. I don't expect a bleached scrub every time but if staff wiped over the table properly, grime wouldn't build up. An extra 4 or 5 seconds a table, really isn't going to keep anyone waiting. And there's nothing so off-putting at sitting down to dirty tables. It makes the whole place feel grubby.

Coffee shops are bad for this too, the last few times I’ve sat in a Costa it’s felt very grubby - partly school holidays and partly staff shortages I guess 🙄

They’re probably short staffed. Annoying but not the staff’s fault. As someone else said upthread, if they deep cleaned each table, they’d be behind with everything else and I’m guessing that their customer base (families with children mainly) care more about quick service than if the tables and chairs are gleaming. That said, chairs with fabric on them in a restaurant setting aimed at people with small children seems incredibly shortsighted.

Also people who describe themselves as “a bit OCD” are more than a bit infuriating. It’s an actual medical condition that can take over people’s lives, not a cute little measure of how clean and tidy you like things to be.

I can imagine in some places lack of staff is a real safety issue both for staff and customers. There are people with allergies, or risk of transmission of infection.

I take back some of what I just said: I never thought of this. You’re right.

As someone else said upthread, if they deep cleaned each table, they’d be behind with everything else and I’m guessing that their customer base

What do people mean by deep clean. It gets grubby because they don't do even a basic clean. If tables are wiped over between customers, they don't get into a dire state. It really doesn't add much onto staffs time to wipe the table over while they're clearing it.

Doesn't bother me. You sound OCD. What bacteria do you think a person is going to pick up? I have eaten at many places and never been ill.

And I don't think it's staff shortages. Just some places do address it and others don't. Tbf you wouldn't get that at a Michelin star.

We went to a pub with outdoor seats. The glass table had bird poo and lots of dust on it. Definitely not cleaned that day and it was in the afternoon.
Not a member of staff visible. I went and rummaged through the staff area to find napkins and cleaning spray. Once I’d done that many others followed me.
I would have left if not for the friends we were meeting there.

Tbf you wouldn't get that at a Michelin star.

I once went to a Michelin starred restaurant where the toilets were really not very pleasant, and I was quite shocked.

I too miss the previous hygiene standards. I think at times they were a bit OTT, but now we've gone so far back the other way. Im not sure if it's down to staff shortages, or prices going up and me expecting more than I'm getting for my money or whether people just can't be bothered to clean, or maybe I'm just fussier these days.

Yes, I realise that saying a bit OCD is insensitive but that’s how I describe myself. I did suffer from it for many years and had therapy - I had obsessive thoughts and some compulsive behaviours but not repetitive behaviours which I know can be really debilitating as my auntie is going through it now. I have strategies I use to manage my thoughts when out and about but found them to almost disappear during lockdown. We rarely eat out and if we do we pay more and go to more high end places… but when people invite us along and our kids and their kids are having such a great time I try and go with the flow and cope as best I can.

Yes! This!! :-) Smooth wipe-clean surfaces are a must in any setting where you’ve got different people using the same thing over and over… plastic/ wooden wipe-clean chairs too. Then it wouldn’t take the staff long to clean them between sittings… and in a holiday let setting means the guests can keep on top of it too.

I think you do sound overly sensitive. I mean it's not ideal, but unless there was actual visible food stuck to my jeans it wouldn't occur to me to change them.
I accept I may be too far the other way.

I haven't found this issue any worse since pre Covid. The same restaurants that had cleanliness issues then still have the same issues now and for that reason we don't eat in these places. We accept that we either pay more money to eat out somewhere clean or we don't eat out.

The thing about pub restaurants being understaffed is interesting. Good employers who can or can afford to pay well seem to have plenty of staff, certainly through the school holidays.