DINING DIRTY…TOP 3 WAYS TO KNOW IF A RESTAURANT IS CLEAN

We love to eat out but sometimes your fave spot may be slacking when it comes to cleanliness. Here are a few ways to tell if a restaurant is on the up and up.Check Out the Bathroom Employees almost always use the same restrooms as customers, so make sure a restaurant has the basic hand-washing necessities: soap, paper towels or a hand air dryer, and hot water. “A restaurant’s pretty incompetent if it can’t keep the basic sanitary requirements for personal hygiene in the public restroom,” says Roy Costa, a registered sanitarian and founder of Environ Health Associates, Inc. Size Up Your Server Waiters and food runners are responsible for delivering your food, which means their hygiene must be spotless at all times. Look to see if your server has dirt under his or her fingernails, has loose strands of hair, or is visibly sick (aka, coughing or sneezing EWWWW), says Klein. If the in-plain-sight staff isn’t practicing good hygiene, there’s a good chance that the employees in the back aren’t, either. Feel Out Your Food Unless the menu specifically indicates that a meal is meant to be served at room temperature, it’s a major red flag, says Costa. It’s a sign that a plate was left out too long between when it was made and when it was served. Of course, there are exceptions—like if you ordered a medium-rare steak—but it doesn’t hurt to give your food a quick temp check before you dig in. How do YOU test a restaurant… do you look at the score card?