Safest Times to Eat Out

I had a brief interview with William, a chef with very good knowledge of restaurant food safety measures who has worked at restaurants that are affiliated with high-end hotels. I am using only his first name to protect his identity. You probably can already guess what he said about the extent to which he and his fellow kitchen staff were committed to ensuring that food is safe for patrons. "At the off hours," he said, meaning outside of the breakfast, lunch and dinner rush hours, "it is possible to follow food safety rules". "However," he added, "the rules go out the window when the rush is on." Incidentally, these are the times when a majority of people are served at restaurants with the increased chances of getting more people ill at once.

He did not say this but I suspect he saw no reason for anyone to worry. After all, a few rules ignored until it is more convenient to obey them will not hurt any of the hungry patrons during the rush hours, right?

Posted by Felix Amiri

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Felix Amiri is currently the chair of GCSE-Food & Health Protection, and a sworn SSQA advocate.