Stretch the truth to avoid going out to dinner

[Ruggerlass]

I’m supposed to be meeting friends in a couple of days for dinner. I’ve found out the restaurant that is booked has a hygiene rating of 1. I really don’t want to go. My predicament is should I be honest and say why I don’t want to go and risk upsetting friend who’s booked it or stretch the truth to keep the peace. I should say friend is not particularly fussy where she eats.

Well done OP. Quite right!

Also this friend of yours sounds like a piece of work - only wanting to go local to her? Going off the deep end? She sounds horrible!

You have absolutely done the right thing by being truthful op, I am astounded that anyone would want to eat in such an establishment!

Send them the rating, they are probably unaware.

Do tell her the truth……..fibs only come back and bite you on the arse! And to be honest, with such a low hygiene rating why would you risk letting your friend eat there anyway? She might become very poorly.

I'm the biggest fusspot about eating anywhere other than home so I would be a big fat NO to going there. I'd just say I don't want to eat there so I won't come😱

Gosh a 1 star rating god hygiene is gross! And just a potential health risk! It’s possible the person who booked it isn’t aware so I’d just be honest, point it out and say you’re not going to risk your health. Honestly, if they still want to eat there knowing it has a 1 star hygiene rating then they are very very weird.
I don’t know what a restaurant has to do to get a 1 star rating but I’m guessing it involves rodents, mouldy food or having cooked and uncooked chicken side by side. Whatever it is, you’re risking food poisoning.

If you feel uncomfortable being honest about this because you fear their reaction then I think you need to step back and think hard about this friendship. If you can’t be honest about health risks this isn’t a friendship, but then she’s a bully.

A wheelbarrow serving soup!!! 😂😂😂😂

I find it’s mostly Mumnetters rather than women in general.

All the ‘pop a note through the door’ or ‘I don’t like confrontation’ when simple face to face conversation is suggested, gets a bit ridiculous really.

You've done the right thing, OP! If your friend kicks off over this she's an idiot - she should be thanking you for looking out for you all. Food poisoning is not fun.

jesus Christ this is such an overreaction 😂 the friend who booked might not even be aware of the rating. Surely to god a simple ‘just spotted the restaurant has only a 1 star hygiene rating 😬 yikes, shall we book somewhere else’s’ if the others still want to go, crack on and join the next outing

I'd just say 'I'm really looking forward to seeing you guys, but I looked up this place and it has a terrible hygiene rating, can we look at somewhere else instead? Don't want anyone to get food poisoning!'

No need to stretch the truth.

Hi Friend, I was checking Chez Skank on-line to have a look at the menu and I see it has some pretty grim reviews and a very poor hygiene rating. Is this definitely the place you meant, as I don't want to go.

How about Chez Not-So-Skank down the road?

I’ve voted YABU as you were thinking of lying to get out of it. No need to lie - just be up front! It’s a disgusting pit! If you friend “goes off” then possibly not really a friendship worth cultivating

I just tell people, “sorry, guys, it’s got a food hygiene rating of 1 so that’s a no from me.”

Lots of people never look up hygiene ratings, especially for takeaways, and are obvious. My best friend uses her local Thai place and had no idea is was a 2. She didn’t realise they were listed on the council’s website.

@MoistVonL im someone who has never looked up a food hygiene rating! I’m surprised so many do.
we once piled into a restaurant down on the coast, end of December and 24 of us on holiday. Right towards the end of lunchtime service, was pretty full but people were clearing out and they said they’d feed us. Lovely warm pub, staff friendly and welcoming etc. 24 of us ate mostly Seafood, mussels, vongole sort of stuff. Really tasty. Went outside and spotted the food hygiene rating in the window - it was a 1!!!! No one was ill, perhaps they’d already addressed the issue but we had no problems.
I’ve never checked a rating in advance but glad op has spoken up instead of going along with it unhappily.

Nothing is closed because it scores 1 - just look online, there's plenty of places open and operating despite being scored 1 months and months ago.

You’ve done the right thing OP. I’m fairly relaxed about these things but a 1 is terrible.

No way would I eat at such a place! Suggest somewhere else or ditch the idea. Your stomach will thank you.

correct

You can have all the procedures in place but if the paperwork is not up to date or incomplete, you will be marked down

For a rating of 1 it must be a burger van on a rat-infested industrial estate.

no way would I spend a penny piece on a restaurant with that low a rating,

and I'd question the friends you're hanging out with if (a) they choose skanky places for their friends and (b) you don't feel comfortable being honest with them about how grossed out that is,

Take some screenshots of those reviews and send to your friend with something like

’ooft maybe this isn’t the best idea for a place to eat tomorrow? How about x or y instead?’

Im afraid nothing is worth risk food poisoning, especially not fear of offending a tricky friend!

I'm shocked you'd consider bowling out and knowingly let your friends eat there without warning them. Are they actual friends??

Me either! How do we check ?

@TheChosenTwo - I suspect there is a strong correlation between those of us who have worked in catering/hospitality and the people who check food hygiene ratings!

Going through the inspection process and knowing the sort of things that give you a rating as low as a 1 or 2 certainly makes a strong impression.

Getting a 1 doesn’t mean everyone who eats there will be ill, obviously. It just increases the odds. A lot.

@GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER and @OneFineDay13 - your local council or here:

ratings.food.gov.uk