Home > Table Talk > Archives > 2007 > March > 06 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USBig Bad Boo Boos, Like Hair in Your Food
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
An editor passed by my desk a few days back to discuss something that had happened to her and a friend on a recent dine out. I’ll just cut to the chase: Her friend found a hair in her food.
I know.
Bleeeeeeeeeeeeccccch!
Gross.
Yuck.
While the idea of finding someone else’s strand of DNA in my arugula salad is, to put it mildly, a turnoff, the whole situation prompted a lot of questions from me, and they weren’t about sanitation.
I mean honestly, it’s not like it hasn’t happened to all of us before. In my dining travels, I’ve found hair, fingernails — in one restaurant’s bathroom I even found a used condom on the floor of the women’s restroom (and it was a “nice” restaurant).
No, my interest in what happened to my editor and her friend was how the restaurant handled the whole mess. Sometimes a mistake — even one as icky as a hair in your food — can be an entree into a special relationship between the customer and the restaurant.
In this case, the customer was offered another entree immediately, and the price of the dish was removed from the bill. The manager took care in discussing the situation with her until her comfortability level returned. When the bill came, her dessert was on the house, too. A big minus was turned into a plus with an outcome where everyone wins: My editor and her friend both plan to return to the restaurant.
In my own experience, I’m happy when management makes an effort to let me know they’re sorry for my a) being yucked out or b) having been inconvenienced, like say, the time a waiter spilled an entire pitcher of beer on me. The horrible thing (as if being drenched in beer isn’t horrible enough) was that nothing was done about it at all, except for a rather inept apology. No free dessert. No offer to dry-clean my clothes. No plus, big minus.
Still, the discussion prompts me to offer this bit of irony to diners: Get over it. Unless something at a restaurant has made you physically ill and you know it (and if so, you need to report it to the authorities and the restaurant), we need to all take a chill pill and realize that mistakes — even disgusting, gross, big, bad boo boos like hair in your food — happen because people are handling your food and serving you. People, not machines. People, most of whom have hair. We should all be far more concerned about whether food handlers are washing their hands often enough — a sanitary habit everyone from my mother to the CDC knows is the No. 1 way to prevent the spread of germs and food-bourne illness from food handlers.
Of course, if management doesn’t bother to do anything about a problem, there’s, um, a problem. But when care is taken to make you feel comfortable, even under dire circumstance, people are doing exactly what they’re supposed to do: their jobs.
Have you ever found something really disgusting, like hair, in your food at a restaurant? What did the management of the restaurant do to compensate?
Permalink | Comments (96) | Post your comment | Categories: Dining
Comments
By Kristi
March 6, 2007 10:36 AM | Link to this
Anytime I have had anything like that happen, the restaurant has always comped that dish/entree. One time I found glass in some mashed potatoes. They comped my whole meal & gave me a gift card to entice me to come back. I hadn’t even eaten anything yet, as it was in the first forkful of potatoes & very obvious.
By Marie
March 6, 2007 1:31 PM | Link to this
My friend and I were eating at Johnny Rocket’s on West Paces Ferry for lunch. After eating half our meal, we both looked down to see a cockroach perched on the french fries we were sharing. We should have complained, but instead we ran out.
By danish
March 6, 2007 2:32 PM | Link to this
a spider crawled out of my sandwich at a Buffalo’s cafe about 12 years ago. They apologized and brought me a new sandwich but did not comp it.
I didnt freak out b/c I worked in foodservice for years and years, and I know these things happen.
By Alicia
March 7, 2007 8:56 AM | Link to this
I once felt something strange come up the straw in a drink at Applebees and caught the item with my tongue it was a piece of glass that stuck into the roof of my mouth and wouldn’t stop bleeding. All the manager did was take the drink away and comment that someone had broken a glass over the clean glasses.. Didn’t comp the drink or meal
By SharonH
March 7, 2007 8:59 AM | Link to this
I bought a sandwich from the ChickFil-A on Hwy 78 in Snellville and found my sandwich topped with a clump of hair. That was the beginning of my always opening my sandwiches before biting into them. I didn’t bother to return, I just threw it away and I have never returned.
A roach crawled out of a food basket that we bought from Captain D’s in Tifton, GA. They replaced the meal, sullenly, no comp. Needless to say, we had lost our appetite for their food at that point anyway and have never returned.
The worst thing I ever observed was not one, but TWO employees leaving the restroom at the McDonald’s off of I-20 in Oxford, Alabama. They both stopped to arrange their hair but they did not wash their hands before leaving. Thanksfully it was before I ordered anything. I did write the manager on that one (I was just passing through) but I never got a response.
By MJ
March 7, 2007 8:59 AM | Link to this
I was eating at a Rio Bravo and there was a hair in the melted cheese. We called the waitress over and she got the manager. She took away the food and said we will comp it and get you a replacement. When the bill came the meal was on the ticket so I questioned the waitress - I was told they comped the food with the hair but charged for the replacement? Never went back and then they went out of business.
By DB
March 7, 2007 9:17 AM | Link to this
I have two incidents to report:
Applebees on Franklin Rd/South Loop in Marietta. I ordered one of their salads and there was a large staple inside. I bit into it and was wondering WTF I had just bitten into. Told the manager and I got the meal for free.
Eats on Ponce De Leon in Midtown. Sitting at one of the booths next to the windows facing Ponce. A small cockroach fell from the ceiling onto our table. I swept it off the table onto the floor with a napkin. I will still probably go back there because it’s good food, but that was a little disturbing.
By Michelle
March 7, 2007 9:19 AM | Link to this
I found a hair in my breakfast biscuit once at McD’s and when I complained I was laughed at by both the girl behind the counter and an assistant manager. I hate McDonald’s.
By RGS
March 7, 2007 9:50 AM | Link to this
My husband and I were dining at the On the Border at the Avenue at Webb Ginn, and I found a hair in my meal. I reported it to the waitress who immeadiately took my plate away. Within seconds the manager was at our table, apologizing profusely. He informed me that our entire check (excluding the alcohol) would be taken care of. He offered me another entree, but I declined. In addition, to covering the cost of both mine and my husband’s meal they gave us a $25 gift card to use on our next visit. We left the waitress a big tip that day, and have returned to the On the Border several times since then.
By Fulton
March 7, 2007 10:00 AM | Link to this
I never understood why people FREAK OUT when a hair is in their food or ‘something’ is in a drink. It won’t kill ya Advise the mgmt, get it replaced and get over it. It’s not that big a deal folks! I think most enjoy the faux-drama and only seek to exploit the situation.
By Scott Case
March 7, 2007 10:01 AM | Link to this
What’s really awesome is when people eat all but two bites of a sandwich, then tell you they didn’t like it and they want it taken off the bill. If you offer something else they don’t want it because they are already full. When you refuse to comp it you are called a racist and a huge scene is made. I love it.
By MOT
March 7, 2007 10:10 AM | Link to this
I was at a restauant in Gatlinburn area and had been seated for breakfast with a friend. As we waited to order, a small cockroach came out of no where crawling on the wall in our booth. About that time, the waitress came, and I pointed it out. She apologized and said it had just been fumigated the day before and it must have brought out some of the survivors. We had lost our appetite and thanked her, and left but not before we were given a free meal ticket. So we did return and that visit was fine.
There is a Chinese restaurant here near us in Marietta off of Sandy Plains, I don’t think many people frequent it, as we were the only ones in there on a night a couple of my kids and I went to celebrate one of their birthdays. We had been there once before and there had been people and the food and experience were fine. However, this trip, the little old lady that seated us in a booth, then went back to the front picked up a phone she had been talking on, and even after we had sat there and looked at the menu for some time and picked what we wanted, we waited and waitied and waited. She would look back from time to time and see that we were ready but kept talking. As we sat for a while, we noticed movement behind us. There were not one, not two but many little roaches, the ligth kind, starting to come out of who knows where and were running up and down the backs of the benches. We were shocked. And almost immediately my daughter stood up to leave. The rest of us followed suit, we had just been discussing how long we should give this lady to come back and take our order. And we were making jokes, and then for that to happen, it was like HELLO, what more do you want to tell you guys to leave! As she saw us coming she quickly hung up the phone and as we got to her she tried to stop us. I don’t think she understood a word of English. But we just said no thanks and left. We have never been back, never will.
Most places will be decent I have found, when finding a hair, etc. But I have encountered some who are snots. We just don’t stay or go back. If you don’t like the way you have been treated after making a complaint in a reasonable mature manner, then you leave. And depending on what was found either pay or not pay for any portion eatten.
I think may of the fast food and the chain low end restaurants are leary of complaints with the hoaxes that have happened. I am sure there are those out there who will place their own hair in the food to see if they can get it for free.
But by and large especially at the better places you are treated well.
By yucky
March 7, 2007 10:12 AM | Link to this
I was at the Chili’s on Holcomb Bridge in Norcross (now closed!). Half way through my chicken pasta and I found a black arm or mustache hair in my pasta (I do not have black hair). A server walking by saw me sitting there looking a little green and immediately took the plate away. The manager came over and apologized and offered me a free desert. I explained that I had lost my appetite and didn’t care to eat anything else there. I asked if he would comp the pasta. He said that since I had eaten half of it he would not. I asked him to comp half of it and he said no. Glad they are gone.
A few nights later the hubby took me to Olive Garden. Before I could even bite into my salad I saw a dead fly. I completely understand that some things are out of their control and a dead fly is one of them. The excellent server brought us fresh salad and comped my entree. I have returned several times and will continue to return.
Recently, we took the kids to their favorite restaurant, Red Lobster, to celebrate great report cards. I can’t stand seafood but the hubby & kids love it. Luckily they offer a chicken entree! I went to take a sip of my drink and noticed something odd in the bottom. I called a manager over and he tried to tell me it was a bit of the plastic sealant they use where the edge of the table meets the side of the booth. Our server walked up and joined the conversation- she said it was actually a bit of crab leg!!! OUR crab legs hadn’t been brought to the table yet. He said my drink would be free that night. I guess that was nice. It still grosses me out that I could have drunk bits of crab leg!
I think I have a target painted on me at restaurants! No one will eat with me now!
By Dan
March 7, 2007 10:14 AM | Link to this
I was at a jocks and Jills and a friend ordered a salad with Grilled chicken there was a piece of raw chicken in the salad not under cooked 100% raw. It must have fallen off a cutting board or something. So she picks it out and places it on the rim of the bowl and says she would like a whole new salad since the raw chicken had touched that one, they wisked away the plate apologizing profusely and game back quickly with a crisp new salad and hot cooked chiken buuttt. That raw piece was still perched on the rim of the plate. she ordered something else and we had to convince the mgr that he needed to comp the meal she did finally eat
By Bill
March 7, 2007 10:38 AM | Link to this
My wife,daughter and son in law are 99% sure we got food poisoning at Don Jaun Mexican Cantina at CNN Center on 3-1-07. I called the manager and told her that it must have been in the salsa or cheese dip because that was the only common thing we had. She was surprised we had a problem. I am wondering if I should notify anyone else like ATL health Dept.
By SouthsideBum
March 7, 2007 10:40 AM | Link to this
Not gross, but an excellent handling of a situation by a manager. Wife, friends and I were eating at Longhorn in McDonough. The food was very slow in coming, and when it arrived, my order and the order of one of our friends were cooked incorrectly, side dishes were wrong, etc. I asked to speak to the manager who then comped our meals. We chose not to replace them, but just wanted him to know about the kitchen issues.
When it came time to order dessert, the waiter informed us that had been taken care of by the manager. We received a platter with a portion of every dessert that Longhorn had at the time, all free of charge. We were pleasantly surprised and continue to eat at this restaurant on a regular basis.
By DBH 1
March 7, 2007 10:42 AM | Link to this
Think about all the things going on that you DON’T see when you eat out.
By Heather
March 7, 2007 10:58 AM | Link to this
I once ordered from Long Johns Silvers (the last time ever btw) I was about halfway through eating when I noticed that under my hush puppies and shrimp were about 20-30 flying ant-like things! It was so disgusting! I had the worst case of food posioning after that. Never again…
By bzrun1
March 7, 2007 10:58 AM | Link to this
Bennigans on Jimmy CArter years ago. I found a rubbery grey string in my food. The managemnet took the plate away and offered an new dish.I refused. hey comp’d my meal as well as my spouses after I lobbied for it. They showed me that the string in my food was a part of a container seal for one of the ingredients. That really didn’t help. Never ate there again.
By lwa
March 7, 2007 11:06 AM | Link to this
Longhorn’s or Texas Roadhouse on Barrett Parkway (the one with peanuts on the floor). Hubby had fixed up his steak with aug jus, mushrooms,onions, steak sauce and salt. After the first bite, he turned his head and looked at the salt shaker. Inside of the salt shaker was a dead roach. Mgmt. immediately took away our food. Mgmt explained that they had just sprayed the night before and this critter must have crawled away. I lost my appetite and hubby ordered his meal again to go. The entire meal was free.
By HELLINAHANDBASKET
March 7, 2007 11:13 AM | Link to this
At the Arby’s in Marietta we got a handful of ketchup and mustard at the condiment station and opened a couple of the packets before realizing there was blood on them ! We of course went to the management which seemed unconcerned and didn’t even go to the condiment station to get the rest of them and either wash or throw them out. The apology was just a shrug of the shoulders and a blank stare at us like ‘why should we have a problem with blood’ near or possibly in our food. There was no offer of a meal, testing for diseases etc., we dumped our entire meal and left and told anyone and everyone after about it and the restaurant. It wasn’t just a ‘yuck’ factor it could have been a very serious ‘disease’ factor.
By dawgdan
March 7, 2007 11:16 AM | Link to this
My wife is a high school teacher and is a sponsor for one of the clubs that had an event last Saturday. She bought 20 chicken biscuits for the kids at Chick-Fil-A on Highway 92 in Woodstock. One of the other sponsors bit into her biscuit and found what appeared to be a clump of hair fried into the breading on the chicken (Chick-Fil-A breads their chicken on-site). The sponsor returned the following Monday to show the manager and he was MORTIFIED. Turns out it was actually steel wool used to clean the pans and cookie sheets. The next time we place another large breakfast order for the club, it’s on the house.
That was absolutely the best response one can expect. I’ve always loved Chick-Fil-A, not just for the food, but the service is consistently outstanding. Even when a mistake is made, they come through and prove that they are the best fast-food chain in the business.
By Disgusted
March 7, 2007 11:21 AM | Link to this
My disgusting dining experience occurred at a well-known chain restaurant specializing in beef. We had finished our meals and ordered coffee. When I turned up the cream pitcher,I discovered about a dozen shrimp tails on the bottom. Obviously, the waiter had merely grabbed a cream pitcher from another table, instead of bringing a fresh pitcher. Our meals were comped, but I never trusted the restaurant enough to go back.
By UNBELIEVEABLE
March 7, 2007 11:22 AM | Link to this
I work at a very upscale resort in Braselton and you people are complaining about hairs ! You have no idea what goes on in the kitchen, if you did you’d never eat out again. Add illegals who do not have the same shots as citizens thus carrying diseases like TB and its a wonder more people aren’t sick ! I try very hard to make sure all is sanitary but when management says serve it anyway, we serve it. Personally I never eat out and prepare all my own food, after what I have seen I don’t trust anyone.
By lewilliams
March 7, 2007 11:35 AM | Link to this
My husband and I had dinner at the new fancy,upscale restaurant “THE BED” and not only were the sheets dirty but I recieved two long strands of hair in my entree. The management did nothing but took the food back to the kitchen, removed the hair and returned with the same plate. I know becase the fork was still in the potatoes. We were not complimented the entree or even our drinks. You can bet I will not go that BED ever again. Customer service is everything and if you can not provide good cutomer relationship for a $100.00 meal I can let others know what to look forward to in “THE BED”. POOR QUALITY SERVICE.
By The Master Debater
March 7, 2007 11:35 AM | Link to this
No complaints here, but I’d like to “second” dawgdan’s comment about Chik-fil-A.
When it comes to customer service, this chain is head and shoulders above every other “fast food” restaurant. I mean, it’s not even close.
It makes you wonder: if Chik-fil-A can find polite and attentive employees, why can’t all of the other chains?
By sharonj
March 7, 2007 11:44 AM | Link to this
I was eating at Golden Corral with my husband and children when I noticed hair in my food. I brought it to the manager’s attention and he looked at me like I was a criminal. He was very skeptical and finally he said “I can give you a coupon for a free meal”. I was appalled. I told him to keep his coupon and that I would not be back. He treated me as if he felt I was trying to scam him.
By Homemade
March 7, 2007 11:47 AM | Link to this
All of the above reasons, and a few more, are reasons I NEVER eat out. Like UNBELIEVABLE, I worked in foodservice and know what goes on behind those swinging doors.
By Political Mongrel
March 7, 2007 11:47 AM | Link to this
Three weeks or so ago, a group I was in ate at a Greek restaurant in North Charleston, SC. One of the guys was working on his steamed vegetables when he bit into something abnormally chewy. It was a bloody band-aid. They immediately comped his meal, and those of us who had the same veggies lost our appetites.
By Stars
March 7, 2007 11:49 AM | Link to this
I second that Unbelievable. I was a server for a while and trust me, folks, you don’t even want to know what goes on in the kitchen…
By James
March 7, 2007 11:56 AM | Link to this
When you pay your employees minimum wage (or barely higher), you’ll get minimum work from them, and it will show. This is not just the case for restaurants but for retail too.
Places like Costco or In-N-Out Burger (out west) pay their employees well and treat them fairly. This promotes loyalty and a better work ethic because employees feel they are valued by their employer, and this shows to customers through better service.
When companies scrimp on wages you get apathetic high school dropouts at McDonalds and customer service reps who can’t speak clear English.
By Rob Smith
March 7, 2007 11:57 AM | Link to this
Do not patronize 100 Black Men Member Mike Tabbs restaurant “The Real Chow Baby” in West Midtown” They are not honest people and the food is just not that good. Read more at the following Website! **Link: http://redrockglobal.blogspot.com/ Click Here.
Thank you…
By Jo
March 7, 2007 12:03 PM | Link to this
My brother used to manage a fast-food franchise & more than once he caught employees (all low-end foreigners. No surprise here!) scraping up food that fell on the floor & then serving it to customers.
By sharonj
March 7, 2007 12:07 PM | Link to this
DBH 1 you are so right. That’s why my mama always says “keep your azzes at home and eat”.
By Andy
March 7, 2007 12:10 PM | Link to this
Rob, just what does his being a member of the “100 Black Men” have to do with his restaurant?
I think The Real Chow Baby has great food.
By Mark
March 7, 2007 12:10 PM | Link to this
I was having dinner at an Italian restaurant on Roswell road many eyars ago (I think it is gone now). I found a wad of what looked like a dirty strand from a mop. The waiter took my dinner to the kitchen only to return with it a few minutes later. He told me that the was was eggplant that had inadvertly ended up in my meal. He placed the plate on the table and excused himself. I was completely grossed out even if it wasn’t a mop strand. I didn’t eat the rest of my meal. No ammends were attempted. I never went back. I think the restaurant is out of business.
By Mark
March 7, 2007 12:11 PM | Link to this
I was having dinner at an Italian restaurant on Roswell road many eyars ago (I think it is gone now). I found a wad of what looked like a dirty strand from a mop. The waiter took my dinner to the kitchen only to return with it a few minutes later. He told me that the was was eggplant that had inadvertly ended up in my meal. He placed the plate on the table and excused himself. I was completely grossed out even if it wasn’t a mop strand. I didn’t eat the rest of my meal. No ammends were attempted. I never went back. I think the restaurant is out of business.
By The Master Debater
March 7, 2007 12:15 PM | Link to this
With all due respect, James, I think your comment is an indictment of EMPLOYEES rather than EMPLOYERS.
When you get right down to it, you don’t need any level of education to take pride in your work. You do need, however, some “home training”.
I was always taught - by my parents, by the way - that any job worth doing is worth doing right. In other words, if you’re a street sweeper, be the best street sweeper there is.
Frankly, if a person lacks the motivation and/or common sense to perform adequately in a “minimum wage” environment, I’m not sure why I would hire tham to do a higher-paying job.
I guess it all boils down to this: everybody wants to “get paid”, but nobody wants to start at the bottom and work their way up. Instead, they want things handed to them on a silver platter.
It’s too bad there aren’t more parents who are willing to make their children develop a work ethic as well as an understanding that the world doesn’t them a thing.
Sorry for the threadjack.
By Rob Smith
March 7, 2007 12:16 PM | Link to this
Read the Website first before you comment…
http://redrockglobal.blogspot.com/
By Greg
March 7, 2007 12:22 PM | Link to this
While eating at El Sombrero in Cornelia, GA, my wife and I sat at a booth with a view of the kitchen. I just happened to be looking in that direction when I noticed that when people ordered water that they were filling the glasses from the faucet where they were washing dishes! Probably safe, but if you’re a health nut, I’d think you would believe you were getting some highly purified water and not water from a sink piled with dirty dishes!
By ASR
March 7, 2007 12:26 PM | Link to this
I think the common thread here is the level of restaurant that most people patronize. They are large corporate inexpensive chains with minimum wage employees, un-trained management and corporate buracracy. You will find that if you patronize smaller individually owned restaurants, you will have less incidents such as these (yes there will always be occassional problems at the best of restaurants)and staff that is vested in keeping satisfied customers. Stop giving your money to “On the Border”, go to Taqueria Los Hermanos and instead of “Olive Garden” give your money to Bambinelli’s!
By SW
March 7, 2007 12:30 PM | Link to this
While eating Dinner for Four at the Smiling Chinaman on Buford I noticed a dog collar and tag for ‘Fluffy’ in my meal. The owner came over (imagine Chineese accent here) and told us…” Dog died of natural causes..” I looked at him and said yeah right….and you can say aluminum without an ‘R’ in it too I bet. True story.
By Blue
March 7, 2007 12:41 PM | Link to this
lewilliams, BED has closed.
By Swangirl
March 7, 2007 12:44 PM | Link to this
About five years ago, I had a meal at the now defunct (thank God) Canyon Cafe in Dunwoody. About four hours later, I was sick as a dog. It had to be the chicken sandwich I ate. I was so sick I couldn’t work that day.
I called the restaurant the next day just to inform them of what had happened. I didn’t want any money or a comped meal. The manager laughed at me and said it takes 12 hours for food poisoning to happen so I had to be lying.
Needless to say, I never went back.
By April
March 7, 2007 12:49 PM | Link to this
@ASR—I love Los Hermanos-I have been a customer of the one in Tucker since they opened. But truth be told, we eat at home 90+ percent of the time. The thought of what goes on behind closed doors while preparing my food, truly grosses me out. I can usually whip up a good healthy meal in less time than it takes to drive to a restaurant, wait on the servers etc. And at least at I home, I know what I put in my food.
By mel
March 7, 2007 1:15 PM | Link to this
this is for all the people who said that they have worked at restaurants before and are warning people about all the nasty things going on. question: why didn’t you do something about it? dont you at least have to look at the food you are giving a table? yes.
By Jennifer
March 7, 2007 1:18 PM | Link to this
One year for Boss’s Day, the employees had meals from Hops in Johns Creek brought in. I can’t remember what I ordered but it had a side of steamed broccoli. As I went to eat my very last piece of broccoli, I saw the underside of the floret and it was covered in some sort of larvae. Tons of them, steamed to perfection. I reached over and grabbed my coworker’s broccoli that he hadn’t touched yet, and sure enough, it was covered in larvae, too. I know that wasn’t the most proper thing to do to my coworker but he forgave me. I was pregnant at the time and I ran to the bathroom to throw up but then I thought I’d just pass the worms through my mouth again so I changed my mind. We took the food back to Hops and were told that it was a supplier issue and were given a 30% coupon for our next visit. No thanks!! I never ate there again.
By Michelle
March 7, 2007 1:21 PM | Link to this
A little off topic, but never give your check card to some minimum wage fast food worker at the drive thru, I made that mistake recently and found $400 of bogus charges on my card a few days later, little weasel must have copied my card number.
By Cletus Snow
March 7, 2007 1:23 PM | Link to this
Years ago when I was young and in school I worked in a Steakhouse across the street from the Fox,yes there was a cow out front.It was everything you hope to avoid in a restaurant their only concern was that the dining rooms look good.After the first day I never ate there again,I would walk across the street to the Krystal and pay rather than eat free at the steakhouse. My experiance working a couple of years in that restaurant changed my eating habits ,I’m only comfortable eating where I can see the food prepared Chik-fil-a, Waffle house, I’ve seen some Waffle house restaurants that I wouldn’t eat at but as a rule Waffle house is OK.If everyone knew what goes on in the kitchens,the restaurant business would be different.
By vomitorium
March 7, 2007 1:25 PM | Link to this
Heads up about La Fonda in Candler Park. LOTS of flies. My friend and I ate paella and were hugging the toilet the next night. Also, Ricardo’s on Clairmont (now under a new name). Found some hair in my entree and alerted the waitress (the manager was playing a trivia game or something at one of the tables). He just turned around in his chair and looked at me. NICE! No wonder it’s closed. I don’t trust the new place either ‘cause it’s probably just a re-do from Ricardo’s ‘cause people got grossed out and the manager was a total jerk!
By Marie
March 7, 2007 1:33 PM | Link to this
That’s interesting, SW. I found a collar in my food at the same restaurant. The owner told me that it fell off a chicken, but how many chickens have you seen wearing rhinestone studded collars?
By Nichole
March 7, 2007 1:37 PM | Link to this
once i went to a restaurant with some friends and we ordered a large fry to share, among other things, and when we got our fries we were eating them and in the middle of the container there was a dead fly. it was disgusting. and when we took it to the manager and the workers, they didnt believe us. they blamed us for the fly and said that we killed it and put it in there. right!?..
By Becca
March 7, 2007 1:38 PM | Link to this
Nothing But Noodles on Roswell Road, first (and last) visit. I had four cooked ants on my garlic bread. i told the manager and he picked them off and gave it back to me, no apology, no comp, no nothing. I thought it was VERY RUDE and I’ll never go back even tho the noodles were good.
By Noelle
March 7, 2007 1:46 PM | Link to this
I’ve been lucky. The worst I’ve had was a twist-tie in the middle of a burger. It was obvious what happened — the bag of buns was on a shelf above where the burger was being assembled — but it was still disgusting. The manager comped my meal, but not my companion’s, although she was grossed out enough that she couldn’t continue eating either. (This was at Houlihan’s near Perimeter Mall.)
In a previous job at a newspaper, we published restaurant inspection reports every week. A passing grade was an 85; a Mexican restaurant in town once got a 44. One of the comments was that there were slugs crawling across the cutting boards in the kitchen! Needless to say I never ate there again.
Those who’ve mentioned food poisoning, chances are you’ve made yourself sick at home more often than you have in restaurants. (If you’ve ever had a “stomach bug,” it was more likely cause by contaiminated or improperly handled food than by an infection.) There are exceptions, of course (see the restaurant I mentioned above), but most food poisoning is the result of our mass-produced food supply, not the fault of any restaurant.
By Sagegirl
March 7, 2007 1:47 PM | Link to this
I worked as a server in food service for a number of years. Hair, roaches, foreign objects, glass chips, plastic marker’s fried or baked into food was common. I learned to check behind the cooks and carefully watch what I served my customer’s. But those were the days when customer service mattered and companies actually gave a damn. Times have changed.
So now, when I eat out and I’m forced to send my food back or ask for something “special”, I worry what’s going on behind that wall and hope for the best, thinking back on all the cruel “tricks” that I witnessed way back when; tricks done to un-deserving guests by their evil/frustrated waiter. All under the eyes of management. It was pretty scary!
By tim
March 7, 2007 1:51 PM | Link to this
Found a frozen fly in an ice cude that was in a half drank cocktail. Waitress said sorry, butnothing she could do. Management even refused to replace the cocktail. They had to call in a janitor after the cocktail was inadvertanly spilled on the floor.
By alecia
March 7, 2007 1:54 PM | Link to this
One day I went to the KFC on 78 in Loganville, and noticed that the cashier had a very nasty cold. She was wiping her nose and touching the food with her bare hands. It grossed me out. I left with out ordering.
By you're all racist
March 7, 2007 2:08 PM | Link to this
Cute jokes about the dog collar at the Chinese restaurants.
I thought the AJC was a tad better than this, but I was apparently wrong.
By Georgia
March 7, 2007 2:27 PM | Link to this
After reading these posts, I don’t think I ever want to eat anything again.
This is why I do not dine out. I cook 99% of meals at home. Once, like every third blue moon, we will go out. But after this blog - NEVER AGAIN!!
By Always Wear Gloves
March 7, 2007 2:31 PM | Link to this
For lunch one afternoon, I decided to eat at a BBQ place on Peachtree Industrial that someone recommended. I can’t remember the name of the place but the sign said that they had been in business since 1976.
Once I placed my order, the person in the back prepared my food without wearing gloves. I ordered pulled pork. Imagine someone scooping pulled pork with their bare hands and placing it on a bun. I was so disgusted. I made an excuse that I left my money in the car and I did not return. I don’t ask for much but, please people wear gloves when preparing food for the public. Thank You.
By Pffft
March 7, 2007 2:39 PM | Link to this
Hey Glovey, did your mama wear gloves when she was making your peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?
That someone could be such a pansy made me throw up a little in my mouth.
By bill Hester
March 7, 2007 2:49 PM | Link to this
Never ever drink sweet tea from a restaurant. Take it from a former beverage equipment repair technician.
By sg
March 7, 2007 2:49 PM | Link to this
thai returant in the highlands - right off n. highland down that street next to Adkins Park.
Ordered a couple of spring rolls. dipped in the sauce a few times and then discovered about 10 flies in there.
Got up and walked out. Didn’t pay for my drinks - was in too big a hurry to leave - thought i was going to hurl on everyone.
By Patrick
March 7, 2007 2:55 PM | Link to this
The only complaint I had about Chick-Fil-A was when I went through the drive-thru one night, they gave me the wrong order. I didn’t check it right then like I usually do, and noticed it when I got home. I lived on the opposite end of town from where they were, so I called the manager. I received two coupons by mail for a free chicken sandwich, two coupons for free chicken biscuits, and two coupons for a free ice cream cone.
Chick-Fil-A I think pays their employees more than any other fast-food restaurant. They also give them Sundays off, and have a great benefits program. That’s why 99% of the time you get GREAT service at Chick-Fil-A over any other restaurant.
By Anyone
March 7, 2007 3:00 PM | Link to this
To Pfft: mom making u a sandwhich with bare hands and a total stranger doing the same is TOTALLY different. Stop being so judgemental of others.
By Anyone
March 7, 2007 3:03 PM | Link to this
To Pffft: mom making you a sandwhich with bare hands and a total stranger doing the same is TOTALLY different. Stop being so judgemental of others…
By Natalie in Roswell
March 7, 2007 3:14 PM | Link to this
A friend and I were dining in a quaint little restaurant in New London, CT. My entree had a sauce over it, and what should be revealed from under the sauce but a “junebug,” as my friend, Marsha, put it. I don’t know what kind of bug it was because as soon as I saw that it might be suspect, I stopped looking at my plate. Marsha had to handle it from that point on. She dealt with the server and the plate and everything. I was not charged for the meal. They offered us desert, but we declined.
By SW
March 7, 2007 3:22 PM | Link to this
What idiot would give a fast food worker with pants down to their privates, hat on sideways…your debit card? The only thing I buy from the McDonalds by my house is coffee and even then the person working the cash registar never greets me with a ” May I help you?” They just look at you with a dumb blank look. God forbide your meal is $10.01 and you hand them a twenty and after they ring it up you give them a penny. They have the most confused look on their faces, kind of like Michael Jackson looking at one of his old pictures…..like HUH?
By Pfft
March 7, 2007 3:22 PM | Link to this
If’n the ‘cue joint has been open since ‘76, they likely haven’t lasted that long by making people sick.
Now, run along and quit backsassing yer daddy by telling me to quit being judgmental. Sissy.
By sg
March 7, 2007 3:27 PM | Link to this
i knew a health inspector in Denver. He had some great stories. He walked into a returant one day and noticed the floor was covered in water / some type of liquid. The staff was cooking away making the days soup. Upon investigation he discovered the fluid was flowing down the street from a funeral home………
By Always Wear Gloves
March 7, 2007 3:39 PM | Link to this
To Pfft: Obviously by your defensive response, I hit a nerve. Perhaps you work at the aforementioned establishment. Maybe you were the one preparing the food without the use of gloves. Sorry. I did not mean to make you upset but for the sake of public health, wearing gloves when serving the public is just good sense.
Also, I never said that the place made me sick. I did not eat there. I’m sure their food is great but the presentation turned me off.
By Pfft
March 7, 2007 3:44 PM | Link to this
My response, Pansy, was offensive, not defensive. No, I don’t work there, but tell me where it is and I’ll make it my hangout. Manly men know a washed hand ain’t gonna ruin no ‘cue.
By Pfft
March 7, 2007 3:47 PM | Link to this
By the way, when I’m a-grillin’ fer the fellers or the family, I always warsh my hands after I pick my nose or scratch my butt.
By Sagegirl
March 7, 2007 3:48 PM | Link to this
My husband and I stopped in at Subway the weekend before Thanksgiving last year. The kid behind the counter looked a little frail and peeked… was sniffling, wiping the sweat from his brow with his sleeve. I whispered to my husband.. “you watch, I’ll be sick next week”. Sure enough, I spent the four day Thanksgiving holiday in bed, sick with a stomach flu. A lesson learned. Should have turned and run when I had the chance!!
By AK
March 7, 2007 4:25 PM | Link to this
My husband and I were eating at the White House Restaurant in Buckhead (where you can watch them cook your food) and I noticed the lady that was preparing the plates was chewing a lot. I started watching her closely and saw that she was picking food off of plates with her fingers and eating before she sent them out! I didnt say anything because I couldnt find anyone I thought would care, but we won’t be back!
By Homemade
March 7, 2007 4:30 PM | Link to this
mel if you’ll get a job at a restaurant, even for just a day, and see what goes on behind the swinging doors and what you CAN’T do about it…then we’ll talk. There’s nothing servers can do about what goes on. Complain once about something nasty and management will fire your butt in seconds flat. There’s usually a line of non-complainers who are willing to work and don’t mind filth.
By Kellix
March 7, 2007 4:42 PM | Link to this
I too worked in the foodservice industry, Pizza if you saw what happens to your Pizza before it comes to you, you would never eat it again. I had a experience at McDonalds of all places in Buckhead, I got the breakfast Biscuit and my Hash Brown had a Nice BITE already taken out of it. Like they don’t feed the employees there. The manager gave me 2 hashbrowns for the problem. Also to the people that think Chick filet is great, I’ve had greasy haired kids to watch them stick their hand in their hair then grab my Chicken tenders barehanded. I’ve gotten sick as a dog from their food just the way they didn’t prepare it correctly. They are not perfect.
By dawgdan
March 7, 2007 4:54 PM | Link to this
AK - in fine dining establishments, it’s not uncommon for a chef to taste the food before being sent out. That being said, usually a utensil is used, not bare fingers!
By Pfft
March 7, 2007 5:06 PM | Link to this
For the real scoop on fine dining restaurants please see “Kitchen Confidential,” and “The Nasty Bits,” by chef Anthony Bourdain. Hilarious stuff.
Unless, of course, you’re a pansy like Glovey.
By some guy
March 7, 2007 5:24 PM | Link to this
I ate at an Applebee’s once and found what appeared to be a pube on my steak. Almost puked. Manager gave me a look like I had to be nuts and refused to comp my meal or even replace the dish. I have never been to any Applebee’s again.
By Ribbit
March 7, 2007 5:37 PM | Link to this
Maggots hanging off of chicken pieces in our dishes at El Amigo on Howell Mill. Daughter threw up and we were so angry we walked out.
By Barnone
March 7, 2007 5:38 PM | Link to this
Years ago, a friend of mine was on her first date with a guy she really liked. They went to a then popular place that had the requisite salad bar. My friend had her salad plate in front of her, scooped up some salad on her fork, but continued to gaze into the eyes of her boyfriend. Just as she was about to pop the forkful of salad into her mouth, she glanced down to see a large tomato worm looking back at her. She screamed and threw the fork and salad into the air. Her boyfriend hadn’t seen the worm, so thought she was nuts and the rest of the customers were startled out of their wits!
By Mike
March 7, 2007 6:10 PM | Link to this
While dining at a well established restaurant in Virginia-Highland last year, I discovered a dead cockroach in my salad. I reported this to the manager, who offered to “comp” my meal. Needles to say, I have not been back to dine at this restaurant and have warned my friends and family to avoid the restaurant at all costs.
By TheOne
March 8, 2007 8:36 AM | Link to this
Why in the world aren’t you all taking pictiures (most folks have camera phones) or even calling the Health Dept. on these places. I’m sick to my stomach!!!!!!
By Sally
March 8, 2007 8:51 AM | Link to this
My husband got extremely ill from eating clams at the Atlanta Fish Company. At the time he said he should have been concerned, as the clams were gritty. I called the restaurant to let them know. I didn’t ask for compensation for the meal, but I was certainly hoping for concern. They did not care, offered nothing, and gave no indication that they would check into it. I haven’t been back to a Buckhead Life restaurant since.
By Sagegirl
March 8, 2007 10:36 AM | Link to this
Can’t count the number of times I’ve found hair in my food while dining out. It doesn’t bother me that much. I don’t go nuts over it. I get it. We all have hair and it can’t always be controlled. What bothers me more is when the food order is obviously wrong or over-cooked or under-cooked and the restaurant doesn’t want to make it right. And they still expect you to pay, even after being inconvenienced. I know the customer is not always right, but come on. Places like that, I don’t bother returning to and most of the time they go under, which they deserve.
By lucky
March 8, 2007 12:01 PM | Link to this
As a previous Health Inspector, NOTHING surprises me anymore. Minimum wage employees give you minimum service. Drive around back and look at the dumpster area of a food service establishment: Dirty Dumpster = Dirty restaurant! Buyer beware.
By Karen
March 8, 2007 12:30 PM | Link to this
I worked in a restaurant once assembling pizzas and subs. Turns out I had an allergy to some of the ingredients that caused a really bad oozing rash on my hands. The manager would not let me wear gloves because it “might gross out the customers.” I couldn’t see how it would gross them out any more than my oozing hands in and near their food. I put in my notice and found a better job.
By DBH 1
March 8, 2007 12:33 PM | Link to this
This isn’t a bad experience story, but it does underscore Sally’s experience with Buckhead Life Group. I went to the Fish Market’s market in the back of the restaurant to buy “prime” grade steaks for a special occasion. I thought it odd that they were shrink wrapped in plastic since they were advertised as being from Chops who purportedly cuts their own meat. Nowhere on the packaging did it mention “prime”. The price was more than highway robbery, but I was trying to prepare a memorable meal so I bought it. The steaks had vitrually no marbeling at all, unlike the prime grade I’ve purchased at Publix. And while I can’t prove anything, these from the Fish Market tasted nothing like prime grade, but rather like meat that was marinated and tenderized. I wrote a letter directly to Pano stating my disappointment. I also said I wasn’t looking for compensation but that I felt I was taken and wanted him to be aware of it. All I wound up doing was wasting my time, effort and a stamp as I never heard one word from him or anyone else. I will never patronize the Buckhead Life Group again.
By EGS
March 8, 2007 12:43 PM | Link to this
Ordered sushi at Thaicoon restaurant in Sage Hill Shopping Center. California rolls arrived with a very straight, jet black hair on them. I called over the Asian manager, who actually argued with us, claiming that the hair was not from the kitchen. (We both have blonde curly hair, so we know where it didn’t come from). Manager offered no comp, no nothing. Didn’t even take the uneaten sushi off the bill. Haven’t been back and won’t be!
By AK
March 8, 2007 1:18 PM | Link to this
dawgdan- I have worked as a server before and I know that chefs and expeditors sometimes taste the food for quality. However, this was not the case at the White House! If you’ve not eaten there before it’s not a “fine dining establishment” it’s similar to the Waffle House. The cook in question was not tasting the food for quality, she was eating it because she was hungry! It was quite disgusting.
By Brian
March 8, 2007 3:59 PM | Link to this
My wife & I found a cockroach in our food at a diner one time. We complained but nothing was taken off our bill or anything. Instead, we received a letter from the parent company a few weeks later explaining they couldn’t be held responsible for vermin that people bring in with their nasty selves.
By Denise
March 8, 2007 4:41 PM | Link to this
Late last year (2006) I took my 13 year old son to Outback at the corner of Delk and Powers Ferry, in Marietta. After an extrememly rough day of job hunting I decided to treat my son. We had been ‘skrimping’ for weeks and I was trying to make things feel ‘normal’ again. We were both starved and I ordered a 12oz prime rib-rare. He ordered the kids pasta. Our server struggled with drink refills, no bread was offered, and the lettuce was slightly wilted in our salads-but we hungrily ate it anyway. The “Coo de France” was: my prime rib arrived as a tiny piece of meat, completely grey in color, bloodless, and ice cold to the touch. As I was already stunned that they were trying to pass off 6oz for 12oz (my family owned a steakhouse in Florida and I worked in it for years). I was even more floored as to what happened next. The manager came back to my table with a (2oz) scrap of meat cut off another grey piece, on a COFFEE CUP DISH!. He plopped it down and told me to consider this “my add on piece” with no extra charge. I told the manager that this was unacceptable. I had ordered a 12oz ‘rare’ prime rib and that was what I wanted. He went into the kitchen and finally came out with a proper piece of meat on a dinner plate. BUT.. they had dug through the garbage to put vegetables on my dish next to the meat. Other food particals and dish scrappings were clinging to the chunks of broccoli and snow peas. I was in tears because I was hungry and this was the first decent meal my son and I would have had together in weeks. The manager and staff stood there laughing (they were in their early to late 20’s)and the Manager told me I would need to pay the bill or eat the food and pay. I put down my credit card-got my receipt and left. When I arrived home I immediately wrote Outback a long email letter and received an acknowledgement confirmation that it was received. I also let them know that the grade of beef they were trying to pass off to customers was NOT off their Outback trucks. Within 3 months the entire restaurant was shut down! Outbacks corporate headquarters evidently did do an investigation and found my information to be helpful. Have you ever heard of an Outback closing anywhere else??? I don’t think so! The worst part is Outback never contacted me, thanked me, or offered any kind of restitution. I now have a great job and can go to an Outback location whenever I want, but I will only go if my clients suggest it. I will never go back on my own.
By Rob Smith
March 9, 2007 8:08 AM | Link to this
Boycott Red Restaurant Ventures and their Real Chow Baby Restaurant at 1016 Howell Mill Road, the food is bad and the Mananagement Dishonest!
Click the Link Here for more Info: http://redrockglobal.blogspot.com/
Thank you.
By Drew
March 9, 2007 1:20 PM | Link to this
The funny thing is that many of these restaurants are winning. Come on folks, if a establishment doesn’t comp, doesn’t apologize, or anything, you still have revenge on your hands. Go ahead, let it out. Fill up your drink cup and drop it on the floor. Yes, on purpose! Bloody mouth from broken glass? Spit on the table with your bloody saliva. They will get the picture and be more inconvenienced that you were.
By diana
March 12, 2007 4:50 PM | Link to this
I disagree that Taqueria Los Hermanos is a good place to eat! I got take out from there one night and there was a very dirty thumbnail in my burrito. I could just picture the cook biting his thumbnail and spitting it in my burrito. DISGUSTING!