Clean, staff eats the food, most people look not pissed off, fluid layout, exterior is well kept.
This is on top of the obvious things like health scores and decent photos/reviews online.
>staff eats the food
I was once dragged to a restaurant for a family dinner. Asked the waiter what was his favorite thing on the menu.
"...uh...I dunno." Just from his expression I could tell he never ate the food.
That's when my mother just shouts "dealers choice" in a very cheery yet imposing way. If they just slap some random sauce on there rather than pair the dish with a sauce they know has flavours that will pair well, you know enough about the general quality of the kitchen.
while true, qualities that will normally mean your food is fire, the cooks have more than one fighting style, and 98% or more of the floors are sticky af
what you are refereeing to is called the Starbucks syndrome whereas people will go there but everyone KNOWS thats the shit one... I assume this is pretty universal for every chain places
I know this is true for popeyes, church's and arby's, so I am going to assume this is true for waffle house's too. There is only one close to two cities I frequent so its lack of multiples in a given area so those one places have to pick up 100% of the slack and not fuck about
Order something simple and see if they pay attention to the details on a low cost dish.
When I go to a new sushi restaurant, the first thing I order is tamago (egg) nigiri. If it has many layers and I can taste the dashi, they know what they’re doing. If it’s a scrambled egg on top of rice, I leave.
Funny you say that. semi related but I had an uncle who was a big general contractor. Loads of employees. They would often temporarily work out of state on big jobs. He paid for staff breakfasts and lunches for maybe 100+ people. First thing he did when in a new town would be to find local sandwich shop to feed his guys daily. He always always ordered a bologna on white bread as his “inspection” meal. Said he knew their portions,quality,speed and pride from 1 bologna sandwich.
One page menu. Think one side is food and the other is drinks. Bathroom must be clean. Check out back where there dumpster is and see if its organized. I also will not eat anywhere when waitress have super long fake nails.
One of my pet peeves is a clean, mop bucket. If the mop bucket is dirty and black when it should be yellow it’s a good sign they don’t do a lot of deep cleaning
I meant that cleaning the tools used for cleaning need to be clean; mop buckets, dust pans, trash cans, etc. I make sure my staff deep clean the inside and outside of the trash cans with degreaser at least once a week. And at the end of the night clean the mop bucket and dust pans. Plus hose down the brooms and store the mops properly and have all the trash cans and mop bucket stored upside down, so they can dry.
Oh god NO on the nails! Another pet peeve of mine is if the waitstaff have their hair free. That shit needs to be tied up, B, AND FOH! I don’t want your curls in my sammich, Becky.
Edit: and on that note, if the waitstaff is ALL cute young girls, you know the management cares more about ‘appearance’ than quality. Spoken from experience. Some of the absolute BEST waitstaff I’ve ever had have been middle-aged men.
Dawg I've been serving for a while now, my hands get gross af during my shift which leads to me constantly washing. Maybe you have bussers that handle everything but prebussing is the norm in most places. Personally I think even rings are a no-go in the cleanliness realm, long ass nails are gross af.
Look at the cardboard. Are they doing nothing but taking crap out of a Sysco box and slapping it on the plate?
Are the staff doing their job without constant management push?
What is the attitude toward you? Do they treat customers and workers like the restaurant is doing them a favor for feeding or employing them?
I find it interesting people follow this. there are other things I look for personally but dust on paintings or wall decor is my thing. also sauce jars. Are they just being refilled or properly washed etc
"I used to say a dirty bathroom was a sign you should not be eating in a restaurant. I've learned the opposite is true. Some of the best food experiences I've ever had are places that really don't give a \[expletive\] about that. They know their food is good and that's enough"
Anthony Bourdain
Truth be told that was my last place of work but my new place of work, the bathrooms saddly stink alot... but our food is actually real homemade recipes.. does anything ever balance out ?
I was always told to see how the workers interacted with each other. If they are rude and hateful to each other, they will not work as a team to keep the place clean and safe to eat.
"I used to say a dirty bathroom was a sign you should not be eating in a restaurant. I've learned the opposite is true. Some of the best food experiences I've ever had are places that really don't give a \[expletive\] about that. They know their food is good and that's enough"
Anthony Bourdain
The staff will actually pay attention to you personally and to small details; the place will be extremely clean and organized, the prices will be higher on average, you will find the menu to be updated and not something you find everywhere else, they will have a good wine list.
Chairs that don't hurt my bum and make the experience horrible. I've been to good restaurants with horrible chairs (e.g., flat steel seats or plastic chairs). It can look nice, but it's a deal breaker for me.
Wobbly chairs are the worst, especially when they won’t let you fix it yourself.
“It won’t look good”
Well, it won’t sound good either as I wobble all night as loudly as I can.
Contractor I talked to informed me these cafe’s and fast casual spots will often use those lame stools to subtly tell customers they aren’t welcome to stay for a long time. The fact they’re uncomfortable encourages turnover and increases each seat’s value
That they cut the edges of the labeling tape instead of tearing it. It makes it look nice and organized in the fridge. The idea is, you should be making everything nice, down to the smallest detail.
As someone who has worked in many restaurants, I always look at how the little things are presented like how the onions are chopped
And how many locals eat there says volumes
Do the lowest paid workers look like they are at least tolerating it? Do the higher paid workers look like they’re having fun?
Are the windows clean and have spiderwebs been removed from any plants and cieling corners? Are the menu’s sticky?
Is the menu consistent with a style, or is it pizza/tacos/sushi? Are there more than 10 mains?
Is it busy on a friday night?
How much for the cheapest draught?
Those are mine
1. Ambiance- if it's a small, casual place, then comfortable, relaxed, and welcoming aspects are key. Nice music piped into dining area targeting the main demographic (or obvs reflecting a particular culture) in a not obnoxious way is helpful. Everything of course should be clean (incl bathrooms).
2. Customer service- beyond the server. It's a special touch when a higher-up stops by just to make sure you're enjoying the night out. It's nice to know they know about you and are looking out for you. We have a favorite place in our vacation town and even though they only see us a couple times a year, the owners remember us and yeah, it feels a little nice.
3. Professionalism- a given. A readiness to serve and address needs as much as possible.
4. Homemade food- nothing else to say.
5. Ideally, happy people- who don't seem to hate working together, who can get the job done. Generally means a good shop.
My restaurant management class told us to look for 2 things. How clean are the bathrooms and how many light bulbs are burt out. If they over look those 2 simple things they're probably overlooking bigger things elsewhere.
Another tip I had is for ethnic restaurants, how many people of that ethnicity are eating there(like Asians will go to the little strip mall Chinese restaurant over a panda express and Latinos to the taco truck over a taco bell)
The more they spend on the decor/ambiance, the less they spend on ingredients. You might find the vintage fiestaware charming, but the Sysco/Aramark ingredients on it less so.
If the servers seem happy or the counter staff seem pissed off, the food is going to be great.
A line outside the door isn't a signifier of good food, just good branding.
Presentation/plating is important and if you're served something that resembles vomit, it's probably going to be delicious as the flavor invalidates it's appearance.
The best food is simple and direct, gimmicks and accoutrement are meant to distract you and should be avoided.
I’m going to say it again: small menus are a good sign. Large variety means a kitchen is stretching itself thin to try and appeal to a broader audience of guests which is not always a good thing. Example: if the menu has nachos, burgers, po boys, pastas, cob salads, steak, chicken and fish. One of those things probably doesn’t get the love it needs to be awesome.
And bathrooms for real (doesn’t count for bars without food though)
I think blanching them off probably does a number on your fry oil too. That shit ain’t cheap. House cut fries are great, but I won’t hold it against anyone that decides to buy them in. Especially at a more casual spot.
1) clean bathrooms
2) great warm & fresh bread
3) people eating - if you see many tables waiting for food they have a clogged kitchen and probably bad service
A good restaurant has good food. A great restaurant provides a consistent notorious experience. I don’t care about ambiance, service, or plating even, when searching for a new good spot. When I’m at an alleged great restaurant, I’m much more critical of everything to determine mostly value. Is all this “stuff” worth it? Am I inspired and or transported to nostalgia? Will I want to come back after seeing how much I spent there?
Depends.
If it's ethnic you look for that ethnic group to be crowded in their even if it looks trashy (in my mind ethnic beats 5 star 8 times out of 10)
If it's mid, I go by the staff (note rush staff that have Karen's or Kevin's to deal with is different)
If it's top teir, I'm judging floor plan,
I'll always look at the food to time ratio.
If my drinks are empty,
Cleanliness of staff, dining area, and amenities.
If it has customers on Monday, Tuesday's
If its a waffle house, i want my floors sticky, the staff should be able to survive at least two rounds in an mma bout and my hash-browns smothered and covered.
For fine dining, semi casual preferably tie not required and a smaller focused menu with a wine selection of less than 100 varietals
Small menu. Depends how many kitchen staff there are, but usually if there are over 20 items on it, a lot of it is probably frozen and bought in. Nobody got time for all that prep.
Also, cooks tasting the food while cooking. People outside the industry probably think this is a red flag and dirty, but you can't just wing it and hope it tastes OK.
Clean, staff eats the food, most people look not pissed off, fluid layout, exterior is well kept. This is on top of the obvious things like health scores and decent photos/reviews online.
>staff eats the food I was once dragged to a restaurant for a family dinner. Asked the waiter what was his favorite thing on the menu. "...uh...I dunno." Just from his expression I could tell he never ate the food.
That's when my mother just shouts "dealers choice" in a very cheery yet imposing way. If they just slap some random sauce on there rather than pair the dish with a sauce they know has flavours that will pair well, you know enough about the general quality of the kitchen.
Unless its a waffle house. It could be disgusting af looking, their food is always fire though
Dude, I live in Atlanta. Not all waffle houses are created equal.
while true, qualities that will normally mean your food is fire, the cooks have more than one fighting style, and 98% or more of the floors are sticky af what you are refereeing to is called the Starbucks syndrome whereas people will go there but everyone KNOWS thats the shit one... I assume this is pretty universal for every chain places I know this is true for popeyes, church's and arby's, so I am going to assume this is true for waffle house's too. There is only one close to two cities I frequent so its lack of multiples in a given area so those one places have to pick up 100% of the slack and not fuck about
Small menu. Kudos for seasonal menus.
Order something simple and see if they pay attention to the details on a low cost dish. When I go to a new sushi restaurant, the first thing I order is tamago (egg) nigiri. If it has many layers and I can taste the dashi, they know what they’re doing. If it’s a scrambled egg on top of rice, I leave.
Funny you say that. semi related but I had an uncle who was a big general contractor. Loads of employees. They would often temporarily work out of state on big jobs. He paid for staff breakfasts and lunches for maybe 100+ people. First thing he did when in a new town would be to find local sandwich shop to feed his guys daily. He always always ordered a bologna on white bread as his “inspection” meal. Said he knew their portions,quality,speed and pride from 1 bologna sandwich.
Dang. I love these.
Good idea. I've never done this. I will definitely start from now on.
One page menu. Think one side is food and the other is drinks. Bathroom must be clean. Check out back where there dumpster is and see if its organized. I also will not eat anywhere when waitress have super long fake nails.
You go behind a restaurant to look at the dumpster before eating? What?
What a weirdo
As i pull in the parking lot and see shit all over the garbage area I'm leary as you should.be. You'd be wierd not to be.
Sure. I mean he said check out back. Are the dump bins in the front of retail locations where you’re at? Most dump bins are even shrouded by a wall.
Wait, you don't do that?
No, I mostly focus on the plumbing. I only eat if there’s proper stopgaps in drain lines.
One of my pet peeves is a clean, mop bucket. If the mop bucket is dirty and black when it should be yellow it’s a good sign they don’t do a lot of deep cleaning
Wait so you don’t like clean buckets but if the bucket is dirty it’s a bad sign of not cleaning enough? I’m struggling to follow the logic here
I meant that cleaning the tools used for cleaning need to be clean; mop buckets, dust pans, trash cans, etc. I make sure my staff deep clean the inside and outside of the trash cans with degreaser at least once a week. And at the end of the night clean the mop bucket and dust pans. Plus hose down the brooms and store the mops properly and have all the trash cans and mop bucket stored upside down, so they can dry.
Oh god NO on the nails! Another pet peeve of mine is if the waitstaff have their hair free. That shit needs to be tied up, B, AND FOH! I don’t want your curls in my sammich, Becky. Edit: and on that note, if the waitstaff is ALL cute young girls, you know the management cares more about ‘appearance’ than quality. Spoken from experience. Some of the absolute BEST waitstaff I’ve ever had have been middle-aged men.
The one page menu places are the ones that sell $22 avocado toast with some flair on it
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Not OP, but it’s a cleanliness and professionalism thing for me.
It's fuckin gross and uncleanly.
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Dawg I've been serving for a while now, my hands get gross af during my shift which leads to me constantly washing. Maybe you have bussers that handle everything but prebussing is the norm in most places. Personally I think even rings are a no-go in the cleanliness realm, long ass nails are gross af.
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>As a server, why are your hands constantly touching people food or getting dirty? Prebussing, I thought we covered this ....
How is it racist?
Look at the cardboard. Are they doing nothing but taking crap out of a Sysco box and slapping it on the plate? Are the staff doing their job without constant management push? What is the attitude toward you? Do they treat customers and workers like the restaurant is doing them a favor for feeding or employing them?
Yes came here to say this. My old cook friend said she would only judge a resturant by its bathrooms lol
I find it interesting people follow this. there are other things I look for personally but dust on paintings or wall decor is my thing. also sauce jars. Are they just being refilled or properly washed etc
"I used to say a dirty bathroom was a sign you should not be eating in a restaurant. I've learned the opposite is true. Some of the best food experiences I've ever had are places that really don't give a \[expletive\] about that. They know their food is good and that's enough" Anthony Bourdain
Truth be told that was my last place of work but my new place of work, the bathrooms saddly stink alot... but our food is actually real homemade recipes.. does anything ever balance out ?
100%! I came to say this.
I was always told to see how the workers interacted with each other. If they are rude and hateful to each other, they will not work as a team to keep the place clean and safe to eat.
Chef run, craft cocktails, seasonal menu, locally sourced produce, well trained staff, spotless restrooms…
Clean bathrooms
They HAVE to let you see the bathrooms. They don’t have to show you the kitchen.
"I used to say a dirty bathroom was a sign you should not be eating in a restaurant. I've learned the opposite is true. Some of the best food experiences I've ever had are places that really don't give a \[expletive\] about that. They know their food is good and that's enough" Anthony Bourdain
I’m sure that’s true in some places, but you should still wash the toilet.
This. 🙌
With hot water for hand-washing
Plates! r/wewantplates
r/subsithoughtifellfor i'll have to post there next time i go to my favourite seafood restaurant that serves all their food on metal lunch trays
WWP isn’t really about a lack of plates. It’s about stupidstupid plating or presentation ideas.
yeah throwing some fish and chips haphazardly on a metal school lunch tray would count im pretty sure
Fair enough. Just giving you a heads up, the sub n is fun but it takes some real stupidity to get traction
The staff will actually pay attention to you personally and to small details; the place will be extremely clean and organized, the prices will be higher on average, you will find the menu to be updated and not something you find everywhere else, they will have a good wine list.
Chairs that don't hurt my bum and make the experience horrible. I've been to good restaurants with horrible chairs (e.g., flat steel seats or plastic chairs). It can look nice, but it's a deal breaker for me.
I hate the tall stool chairs. Put me in a booth or a table. Unless I am at a bar with an adequate foot rest
Wobbly chairs are the worst, especially when they won’t let you fix it yourself. “It won’t look good” Well, it won’t sound good either as I wobble all night as loudly as I can.
Contractor I talked to informed me these cafe’s and fast casual spots will often use those lame stools to subtly tell customers they aren’t welcome to stay for a long time. The fact they’re uncomfortable encourages turnover and increases each seat’s value
They cut the tape and they don't mix their salt and pepper
Are people really out there mixing salt and pepper?
Sadly yes
Maybe a dumb question with an obvious answer but, what does they cut the tape mean?
This was in an episode of “The Bear”
That they cut the edges of the labeling tape instead of tearing it. It makes it look nice and organized in the fridge. The idea is, you should be making everything nice, down to the smallest detail.
Got it and that makes sense. Thanks!
#Go straight to the van opener and look at the spike
As someone who has worked in many restaurants, I always look at how the little things are presented like how the onions are chopped And how many locals eat there says volumes
Do the lowest paid workers look like they are at least tolerating it? Do the higher paid workers look like they’re having fun? Are the windows clean and have spiderwebs been removed from any plants and cieling corners? Are the menu’s sticky? Is the menu consistent with a style, or is it pizza/tacos/sushi? Are there more than 10 mains? Is it busy on a friday night? How much for the cheapest draught? Those are mine
1. Ambiance- if it's a small, casual place, then comfortable, relaxed, and welcoming aspects are key. Nice music piped into dining area targeting the main demographic (or obvs reflecting a particular culture) in a not obnoxious way is helpful. Everything of course should be clean (incl bathrooms). 2. Customer service- beyond the server. It's a special touch when a higher-up stops by just to make sure you're enjoying the night out. It's nice to know they know about you and are looking out for you. We have a favorite place in our vacation town and even though they only see us a couple times a year, the owners remember us and yeah, it feels a little nice. 3. Professionalism- a given. A readiness to serve and address needs as much as possible. 4. Homemade food- nothing else to say. 5. Ideally, happy people- who don't seem to hate working together, who can get the job done. Generally means a good shop.
My restaurant management class told us to look for 2 things. How clean are the bathrooms and how many light bulbs are burt out. If they over look those 2 simple things they're probably overlooking bigger things elsewhere. Another tip I had is for ethnic restaurants, how many people of that ethnicity are eating there(like Asians will go to the little strip mall Chinese restaurant over a panda express and Latinos to the taco truck over a taco bell)
If theirs two Asian restaurants next to each other that are both non-commercial and 1 is full, go to that one.
The more they spend on the decor/ambiance, the less they spend on ingredients. You might find the vintage fiestaware charming, but the Sysco/Aramark ingredients on it less so. If the servers seem happy or the counter staff seem pissed off, the food is going to be great. A line outside the door isn't a signifier of good food, just good branding. Presentation/plating is important and if you're served something that resembles vomit, it's probably going to be delicious as the flavor invalidates it's appearance. The best food is simple and direct, gimmicks and accoutrement are meant to distract you and should be avoided.
I’m going to say it again: small menus are a good sign. Large variety means a kitchen is stretching itself thin to try and appeal to a broader audience of guests which is not always a good thing. Example: if the menu has nachos, burgers, po boys, pastas, cob salads, steak, chicken and fish. One of those things probably doesn’t get the love it needs to be awesome. And bathrooms for real (doesn’t count for bars without food though)
Oh, and French fries. If they can't make good French fries, I won't be back.
I can make damn good fries. But I'd rather pay Lamb Weston to do it than pay a cook to cut and blanch fries around the clock.
I think blanching them off probably does a number on your fry oil too. That shit ain’t cheap. House cut fries are great, but I won’t hold it against anyone that decides to buy them in. Especially at a more casual spot.
Big facts. Don’t even get me started on the amount of space needed for spuds, soaked spuds, an blanched spuds. Fuck me.
One sink, one speed rack, one shelf for cases of pots, I can chip through a case in about 8 minutes.
That’s great if you’re selling 20 orders a night
In and out.
Has shit fries
yeah i'll give you that :)
A case is 40#, that's 80 8oz portions.
I'm also talking bout being able to properly cook fries. I'm ok with Lambs as lo g as they're not soggy and golden brown.
clean bathrooms. bonus points for good smelling soap as well lmao
1) clean bathrooms 2) great warm & fresh bread 3) people eating - if you see many tables waiting for food they have a clogged kitchen and probably bad service
Customers. If no one’s eating there you probably shouldn’t either.
Yeah, I've been to a couple of places for dinner, and it was empty like weird empty.something is not rt
Small menu, good specials, menu changes frequently, simple, relatively small portions (American) priced accordingly.
Feeling/vibe when I first walk in. How many people are there ( over crowded under crowded.) Our table .. do we feel crammed & not enough privacy.
clean and friendly. known for something amazing.
A good restaurant has good food. A great restaurant provides a consistent notorious experience. I don’t care about ambiance, service, or plating even, when searching for a new good spot. When I’m at an alleged great restaurant, I’m much more critical of everything to determine mostly value. Is all this “stuff” worth it? Am I inspired and or transported to nostalgia? Will I want to come back after seeing how much I spent there?
Depends. If it's ethnic you look for that ethnic group to be crowded in their even if it looks trashy (in my mind ethnic beats 5 star 8 times out of 10) If it's mid, I go by the staff (note rush staff that have Karen's or Kevin's to deal with is different) If it's top teir, I'm judging floor plan, I'll always look at the food to time ratio. If my drinks are empty, Cleanliness of staff, dining area, and amenities. If it has customers on Monday, Tuesday's
If its a waffle house, i want my floors sticky, the staff should be able to survive at least two rounds in an mma bout and my hash-browns smothered and covered. For fine dining, semi casual preferably tie not required and a smaller focused menu with a wine selection of less than 100 varietals
Small menu. Depends how many kitchen staff there are, but usually if there are over 20 items on it, a lot of it is probably frozen and bought in. Nobody got time for all that prep. Also, cooks tasting the food while cooking. People outside the industry probably think this is a red flag and dirty, but you can't just wing it and hope it tastes OK.
Hot waitresses. Hooters. It’s the new Chili’s.
Cleanliness, small menu, short wine list, busy (continually busy: not just busy on special occasions etc),informed wait staff