A food stall displays and places eating utensils such as chopsticks and chili sauce bottles on the sidewalk - Photo: QUAN NAM
Some people even think that when you go to a restaurant, don't look too closely and don't see things you shouldn't see, then the food will be delicious.
Meat and bones left on the sticky floor
Recently, a customer posted a video "exposing" a bun cha restaurant in Hanoi that washed meat with black charcoal water. The restaurant representative explained that it was grease dripping from the grilled meat and the person grilling the meat was negligent, so they did that.
Authorities fined the restaurant 3.5 million VND for not having a glass cabinet to preserve the goods, not wearing gloves when processing, and not having health certificates for workers.
In my opinion, food safety issues at restaurants revolve around the origin of food and how it is prepared.
Hanoi in particular and the whole country in general have so many restaurants, how to manage the processing to ensure hygiene?
Saying this, I remember the first time I lost my appetite and didn't dare eat even though I was very hungry.
That time, around 7pm, after struggling with the traffic jam outside, I stopped by my "favorite" pho restaurant near my house. This restaurant has been open for a long time, since before I moved to that area.
Entering the restaurant, I ordered a bowl of rare beef pho and went to wash my hands. The restroom was at the back, across from the kitchen.
I witnessed a haunting scene. The wet floor was covered with shoe prints. On the floor were vegetables picked and unpicked, placed in large baskets, next to large plastic bags filled with bones and meat. On the wet floor, two basins of meat soaked in water and smelled. When I entered the bathroom, the toilet bowl seemed to have not been cleaned for a long time, causing a feeling of nausea.
I hurried up to the dining area and saw my bowl of pho steaming hot. It looked delicious, but I couldn’t eat any more.
I had to pay the bill, which was 50,000 VND, and then said I had something urgent to do and had to leave. The owner said he would put it in a plastic bag to take home, but I refused and never came back again.
The worst thing about eating out is sitting on a pile of bones, lemon peels, and paper towels - Photo: QUAN NAM
Meat fell on the ground, picked it up and continued grilling, vegetables had 'foreign objects'
Many people share that when eating out, they have to accept and leave food hygiene and safety to luck. Mr. Thanh Huynh (29 years old, living in Thu Duc City, Ho Chi Minh City) said: "When eating out, it is best not to look too closely, because if you see something, you will not be able to eat anymore."
He joked: "Every restaurant now has two or three food safety certificates on the wall. But whether they comply or not, only God knows."
Mr. Huynh recalled one time he went to eat fried chicken with rice. Seeing that the restaurant was crowded, he felt assured of the quality. But when he entered the restaurant, he saw the processing counter covered in black oil, and he felt sick.
"I told myself that the restaurant must have been crowded so the owner didn't have time to clean up. Besides, the smell of fried chicken was fragrant and stimulated my taste buds so I didn't think much about it," he said, explaining how he calmed himself down at that time.
Unfortunately, after finishing most of his plate of rice, he discovered a "strange object" stuck to the last lettuce stalk. "It was a small snail the size of a black bean, still crawling," he said.
Angry, Mr. Huynh did not want to make a fuss, so he called the restaurant owner over and discreetly pointed at the plate of rice. The restaurant owner was a bit embarrassed but hoped he would understand, saying that he would not charge him. "I'm fair and square, so I'll still charge the full amount, but I will never go back to that restaurant again," he said.
Minh Triet (4th year student, Thu Duc City) shared that he is a student who does not have much money, each meal costs a maximum of 30,000 VND so... he does not dare to demand high standards of food hygiene and safety. "I know that you get what you pay for, as long as I do not see things I should not see, I can still eat well," Triet expressed.
Triet said that once he saw the person grilling meat at the broken rice restaurant drop a piece of meat he was grilling on the ground but still picked it up to continue grilling. But not knowing what to do, he pretended not to see anything and continued eating his plate of rice.
Restaurants need to pay attention to food hygiene and safety - Photo: QUAN NAM
A basin of water, please do not wash it many times
Ms. Mai Le (living in Tan Binh district) said that her group goes to Phan Thiet (Binh Thuan) every year because her friend's house is there. She said: "In Phan Thiet, there is a famous restaurant but the floor is full of trash like paper, bones... So every time the group quarrels.
Some of you said the restaurant was delicious, let's go eat, the rest refused to eat, saying "we can't sit and eat on a pile of trash". Once, my group had to split into two, one group ate noodles, the other ate Quang noodles.
Food safety is a top priority for public health, as people often say "disease enters through the mouth".
Many people who often eat at street stalls expect restaurant owners to raise their awareness of their responsibility in ensuring food hygiene and safety. Restaurants need to regularly clean and disinfect cooking utensils, prepare food, and wipe down tables and chairs.
If you are eating on the sidewalk, you should make sure to wash your dishes and chopsticks thoroughly, not just rinse them briefly or wash them multiple times in a basin of water. For restaurants that rent premises, there should be a faucet, soap, and sink outside so that customers can wash their hands.
Put on gloves, wipe the table, and give change.
Mr. Thanh Huynh said that he often saw the cooks wearing gloves, but they used them for many tasks: from cutting meat, picking up fresh meat (if the customer eats rare dishes), noodles, vegetables, coriander, pepper, and then calmly holding a rag to wipe. He wondered why they wore gloves?
Minh Triet added that many times he saw restaurant owners wearing gloves, thinking it was to ensure hygiene. But after finishing making food, when a customer paid, they used the same gloves to receive and change money. "They probably wore gloves so they wouldn't get their hands dirty," Triet said.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/tra-tien-to-pho-50-000-dong-roi-vot-le-vi-lo-nhin-thay-nha-bep-20240624134526499.htm
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