do you worry about kitchen cleanliness?
 

There is this little dive vegetarian Indian restaurant that I really like. The food is tasty, the help is friendly, and it is really cheap.

The only problem is that I'm sure if I saw the kitchen I wouldn't like what I see. The place is kind of dingy. Every once in awhile I'll get a glimpse inside the kitchen when the staff comes out. While it doesn't seem dirty per se, it seems real crowded.

Couple this with the recent series Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares, I've been thinking a lot about kitchen cleanliness.

So, what about you? Do you worry about your local dive's kitchen?

No. One man's grime is another man's flavor. ;)

NO, it is just as easy to get bad (contaminated) food from a clean kitchen. As long as they wash their utensils and cutting boards you are fine.

When I was in Hue, Vietnam I took one of those tours to see the Imperial Tombs. We were on a boat that looked a lot like this. http://vietnamboats.org/Photos2/wenTAC1006.jpg

When we came back from visiting the first tomb, lunch was served on the boat, having been prepared and cooked on a little gas burner in the back where the owners lived. When we got back from the 2nd tomb, the wife was washing the dishes in the river where the kids were playing, and people were doing laundry.

I figure if I survived that, a little dinge isn't gonna hurt me.

You gotta give your immune system a workout once in a while ;)

The last two cities I've lived in, the local paper published health-inspection results. There are at least two cases where a place I've eaten (one on many occasions, the other just once, but within a day or two of the inspection) came out pretty poorly; I certainly never noticed any problem in the food or my reaction to it, and neither did any of my dining companions. Conversely, I've had a couple pretty bad reactions from places that inspected just fine.

If you've eaten at the place more than once (sounds like you have), have noticed no ill effects, and say that the kitchen "doesn't seem dirty per se," just "crowded," I would stop worrying and enjoy the food.

I try not to think about it as I have plenty of cleanliness phobias as it is.

When I was little, I was always the one who found bug legs in the soup at our favorite Chinese restaurant. My mom told me, "That's because you're the only one who's looking for them."

Euuw :(

I was in a great Thai restaurant in NYC. I was the only Brit - all others were US residents, mainly New Yorkers.

I went to the bathroom and was shocked that it was both dirty and in the middle of the kitchen.

As I returned to my table, shocked and appalled I explained to my friends what I had seen. They just told me to chill out and forget it - that was just NYC and I better get used to it!!

And actually the food was great and nobody got sick, so I figured I just need to chill a little about these things.

Most times I try not to think about it. I'm fortunate that I have a cast iron stomach. My favorite places to eat are the street vendors in Mexico.

I have fond..although drunkenly blurry memories of bacon wrapped hot dogs in Tijuana from my underage days.

I worked in a kitchen as a chef for 2 years, and kitchen cleanliness is important. You don't want other animals feasting on the food intended for humans - vermin are probably the biggest worry in my eyes.

What's more important to the safety of the customers is the quality of the food. Crappy ingredients produce crappy and potentially unsafe food.

There is a huge difference between crowded and dirty. If the kitchen is tiny, I don't care.

If it's got vermin running around, the food is out all day, or it's flithy,that's a totally different story.

If I see something I'm concerned about in looking through a door I may look up it's inspection reports before going back (or that may be enough never to go back), but for the most part I expect commercial kitchens to be a zoo.

There is a little divey eatery in SF that I go to quite often. Dust is embedded in the grease on the hood over the stove, the windows and floor are filthy. But the grill is clean and I've never gotten anything close to a stomach problem from the place. One of the benefits to the rather disgusting look of the place is that people walk in, look and walk out. It keeps seats open for those of us who are regulars!

I've been in a couple of restaurants where the cockroaches were so bold they were running up the walls beside me (one was a well-known chain T.G...)! In one pizza joint we walked in looking to get a slice and saw the roach running across the counter heading straight for the 'za... we did an immediate u-turn! I figure if the bugs are so bold as to be out running amongst the customers, I really don't want to know what's hiding behind the kitchen door - and we never return!

DD

One of our local TV stations' nightly news does a weekly report on top & low performers on health dept. inspections. Most of my favorite restaurants seem to perform poorly. Don't know why, but Chinese restaurants almost always get low scores, and never seem to learn from the experience. After raising kids, however, I'm not germophobic. I'm also a great fan of street food in cities I travel to.

Having been a victim of food poisoning a couple of times while traveling I'm a little paranoid about this.
First thing I'll do is walk into the bathroom to wash my hands. (might as well practice good hygiene) If it's filthy, I'll go somewhere else. I figure, if they can't keep a bathroom clean, the kitchen won't be either.
I did find a bathroom at a bar in Colorado that was so bad I wouldn't even wash my hands.

I see you're in Boston... do you feel okay telling us what restaurant you're talking about?

Same here. The last time I crossed back into the U.S.A, the Customs Agent asked: "Are you bringing anything back with you?", to which I replied, "A bottle of Tequila and a case of the $hits."

He laughed, and waved us through. :D

Actually, this restaurant is in Columbus, Ohio of all places. :)

I wouldn't always link any illness to the restaurant, think of the e coli spinach issue awhile back

to answer the OP's question, I now never worry about the cleanliness of a restaurant's kitchen.

Are you still in the Back Bay? My wife and used to live right next to Herb Chambers - the Boston Auto dealer extraordinarie - on Comm ave in the Back Bay. (We lived in a 650 sq ft apartment and I believe Herb had his place on the market for $20 million at the time.) Every night on our way home from work (and I mean EVERY night) we saw large city rats going in and out of holes in front of Herb's place; as well as the other palatial places along the route. I have also seen a mouse at a "very upscale french restaurant in a brownstone" in the Back Bay. In some locales, upscale or joint just doesn't matter - disposal of refuse by every and anyone in neighborhoods with high density; especially in neighborhoods built on fill matters much more and there just so much you can do. (Of course that's no excuse for uncleanliness.)

I was at a dim sum place in SF Chinatown a few years back. While dining, a cockroach fell from the ceiling and landed on the back of my hand, which was holding a pair of chopsticks with dumpling in the middle. I jumped up, screamed, and shook the insect off. The waiters came running over to catch the cockroach, but they made no apologies to us, and none of the patrons seemed at all disturbed. As for me, I ate the rest of my dumpling, and we finished our meal.

I've been to that restaurant! A cockroach landed on the arm of one of my dining companions.

Are we talking about North American kitchens only?

In China, Taiwan, it is so common to see critters everywhere. It is not a big deal.

Personally I don't worry about it. If it taste good and it is a popular spot, I assume that they haven't killed anybody recently. More than likely they the pot/pan they use has been used enough times before me that it will be clean enough for my meal..

Why ruin a great meal wondering about things we can't control?

On a Nile cruise I saw crew washing dishes in the spew from the bilge pump.

If you see a cockroach in a resturant, it usually means he is dying. They run from the light unless they are too poisoned to see straight. I've seen roaches in three-star joints.

Here in DC the same government that runs the dysfunctional schools and the cratered roads also runs the health department. I stick to top-rated joints and hope for the best. We also keep our shots current.

I ve spent my share of time in Restaurant Kitchens (HS jobs) and the only thing I worry about is something that you can't see. That is Refrigerator temp.

During dinner in a Globe, AZ restaurant, we were entertained by restaurant employees trying to get a scorpion off the ceiling to prevent it from landing on the family directly below. :p

I just try to not look and not think about it. My stomach can turn pretty easily. I don't even like the kind of fast food places where you can see them making your food.

I try not to think too much about it because in many instances, I can't really see the kitchen clearly anyways and I don't bother heading towards the restroom halls just to take a sneak peak before ordering any dishes. May not necessarily be the case, but if we see the dining atmosphere to be acceptable on the issue of hygiene, then It'll be good enough for us.