Worth reporting this business?

johnmurph01

Hi all,

So today I was viewing an office which looks over a courtyard. A restaurant shares this courtyard (the back area / kitchen) has a door into the courtyard.

Anyhow, I was looking down and saw a kitchen porter or some other member of staff come out of the restaurant with a box of potatoes (in a plastic box of some sort). She then put this on the ground under a tap, turned it on and proceeded to scrub the potatoes with a manky looking yard brush which was out the back of the premises.

I'm not sure if these spuds were going to be peeled again etc, but I wouldn't have thought this was the best way about washing them.

Is it worth reporting this business to the FSAI? I know for a fact I wont be eating there again and will be telling my friends likewise. Is it grave enough to get them into hot water (I dont want to be having adverse affects to any business but a restaurant should take its responsibilities towards basic food safety seriously).

Thoughts?

peadar76

the spuds will be grand, sure they still have to be boiled. or were they already boiled?

johnmurph01

I saw from afar, but didn't look like it.

Im more concerned about potentially having a rat piss coated brush rubbing off my food (regardless of it yet to be cooked or not)

MissFlitworth

When you say a yard brush do you mean like a big yard brush sweeping brush or just a brush that looked a bit manky from a distance? It could have been a vegetable brush she was using, they can look an awful lot like the end of a sweeping brush or something you'd groom horses with

johnmurph01

This sort of yard brush. I passed by it after and there it was sitting up against the wall outside. It was manky as the brush was worn down and was left on concrete out the back of the restaurant.

Keith186

I think so. Doesn't sound like best practice from a hygienic point of view.

Worst that can happen is the Food Safety Authority will inspect it and says its OK or not OK.

johnmurph01

Keith186 wrote: »

I think so. Doesn't sound like best practice from a hygienic point of view.

Worst that can happen is the Food Safety Authority will inspect it and says its OK or not OK.

Fair point. Could be the tip of iceberg or isolated thing. Either way, that's what they are there to find out.

Slaphead07

Keith186 wrote: »

I think so. Doesn't sound like best practice from a hygienic point of view.

Worst that can happen is the Food Safety Authority will inspect it and says its OK or not OK.

Agree 100%.

johnmurph01

Reported the business anyways via FSAI website. They rang me back next day to say they were going to get it out.

+1 for efficiency there

vic20

Did you ever consider that maybe the person was just removing most of the earth from the potatoes outside before taking them back into the kitchen? Earth can be contaminated with Clostridium botulinum so washing them with a "rat piss coated brush" would be the least of your worries.
As far as I can tell from your initial post you were not a customer but just happened to see something from an office overlooking a yard. Were you ever a customer? What was the food like? Did it make you ill?

As an ex restaurateur I would like to add that if I was the owner of the establishment you've reported I would be praying for you (& not in a good way!)

johnmurph01 wrote: »

I saw from afar, but didn't look like it.

Im more concerned about potentially having a rat piss coated brush rubbing off my food (regardless of it yet to be cooked or not)

Mr Simpson

Vegetables should be washed in a dedicated preperation sink, end of. That kind of practice is disgraceful and in contrevention of their HACCP plan.

Vic20, I don't see your issue here, do you think that kind of stuff is ok? I've been working in restaurants since I was 15, if any place I was working in did this, I'd report them myself, Its shocking. Using a brush thats left outside is further contaminating the food, not helping to clean it.

vic20

I was doing a "just suppose" as in I would not have a problem with taking a box of very dirty potatoes outside to wash the worst of the earth off them before bring them back inside to get a final clean.
I had more of an issue with the OP...was he a customer or just a busybody...?
(Without all the details it's all guesswork, waffle & bull**** anyway)

MarkMc wrote: »

Vegetables should be washed in a dedicated preperation sink, end of. That kind of practice is disgraceful and in contrevention of their HACCP plan.

Vic20, I don't see your issue here, do you think that kind of stuff is ok? I've been working in restaurants since I was 15, if any place I was working in did this, I'd report them myself, Its shocking. Using a brush thats left outside is further contaminating the food, not helping to clean it.

Slaphead07

vic20 wrote: »

I had more of an issue with the OP...was he a customer or just a busybody...?
(Without all the details it's all guesswork, waffle & bull**** anyway)

he doesn't have to be a customer to have concerns and he's absolutely 100% to report it. If it's just removing excess dirt before a proper wash then let the restaurant explain that to the FSA.
With your attitude I'm kinda glad to hear you're an ex restaurateur.

johnmurph01

vic20 wrote: »

I was doing a "just suppose" as in I would not have a problem with taking a box of very dirty potatoes outside to wash the worst of the earth off them before bring them back inside to get a final clean.
I had more of an issue with the OP...was he a customer or just a busybody...?
(Without all the details it's all guesswork, waffle & bull**** anyway)

Jaysis... Respectfully what you say doesn't add up. You mention some sort of bacteria - how about the bacteria on raw meat! Do you advocate prepping that outside the kitchen also or ignoring the rules for handling that?

There is no where in HACCP etc that says food is to be prepp'd outside of the premises in this way.

I am a customer of this place as are friends and family (wont be again) and that doesnt make any difference either which way.

BTW - Afar = 20 yards max.

You're trolling if you ask me

Dara Robinson

johnmurph01 wrote: »

This sort of yard brush. I passed by it after and there it was sitting up against the wall outside. It was manky as the brush was worn down and was left on concrete out the back of the restaurant.

As a former Chef, yes please do. That is disgusting. Regardless of what it is, if its used for food it should receive treatment as a food utensil. Over the years we have used some very strange things in the kitchens as utensils (including a traffic cone once) but they were all cleaned within an inch of their lives and then, while still in use (as in will be used tomorrow, next week, next month kind of thing), would receive the same class of treatment as a kitchen knife, spatula or anything else used for food. While I know that these spuds will be probably rinsed again, and then boiled, steamed (in a commercial kitchen this is most likely actually) or roasted its still the principle of it. You just dont know what that thing will have on it after the treatment you described, especially if its a regular thing and especially seeing as cross-contamination is very easy when people are lazy

I would recommend that while you most certainly should contact the FSAI and let them deal with it I would also recommend that you 1) under no circumstances name and shame them and 2) contact the owner and advise him/her of what you saw and that you also contacted the FSAI and that they should expect action from them.
My main reason is because you just dont know what the owners are like, they could be as horrified about this as you and will get their act together and ensure it does not happen again, from experience, owners and head chefs who dont care about this never actually meet the standards of the inspectors so if they do get an inspection and they dont care they will have a 100 other failures and they will have to get their act together or be shut down and if they do care they will ensure it never happens again and they will also pass their inspection with flying colours. From years of being through them, inspections are tough, you need to have your ducks in a row to pass them.
In all my years, including a 5* hotel with a 2 Michelin * restaurant, never once has any restaurant received a full pass, the inspectors always have some small things they tell you to sort, always.