Are You Swayed by Hygiene Ratings?
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Do you pick places to eat/order from based on hygiene rating? Do you think they are 100% accurate?
Yes i go off the ratings I wouldn't eat anywhere that didn't have one and there's a few near me that don't have them
If I see a restaurant or takeaway with very low ratings I won't use them and I do check occasionally. I'm not very adventurous with takeaways though tending to use the same takeaway 95% of the time.
I wouldn’t say i pick based on hygiene ratings but if a place has a low rating i won’t be visiting
My friend 's lad used to check the Hygiene Ratings to see if the Restaurant/ Cafe had 5*s if it didn't he wouldn't eat there,he was a young toddler, now a strapping 17 year old & his Dad is a Chef!
I have to admit,yes I do check the Hygiene Scores & if a Restaurant/ Cafe doesn't have 5*s I don't eat there, .
I always read the local newspaper, The Sheffield Star on line,every so often they give the High or Low Hygiene Ratings out,my friend also checks & sends me the link so I can see for myself which eatery is bad or good.
I sometimes used to work with a lad in his late twenties who would order Takeaways,he was from the other side of Sheffield, he NEVER checked the Hygiene Ratings!!
I used to tell him where NOT to order food from as I know the area,I always told him to check the Hygiene Rating & if it's below 5* swerve it!
I also look for the cleanest toilets,taking note of if they have Hand-wash,decent Toilet Paper,some even have floral displays!
One of the cleanest toilets I saw in the last few years was at The Riva Project, a Sheffield Charity that helps people with Learning Disabilities where my daughter used to volunteer, they have a lovely little Cafe that sells homemade meals,cakes & drinks for a decent price they also have a Charity Shop. The toilets are cleaned by volunteers & are absolutely spotless!
A branch of Patisserie Valerie has closed. The news report announced it only got one out five star hygiene award yet it always appeared clean. Obviously the kitchen didn’t. My favourite coffee and cake place.
Yes a million percent.
Don’t get me wrong, you may get the odd time where you get food poisoning from a 5 star hygiene place (from experience). But i would rather eat from somewhere that is clean and abide the hygiene regulations.
Is it possible for people to clean up before the hygiene rating or do they turn up unannounced?
DanielleMcK1992 according to our local council they usually don't know they are going to be inspected. The highest risk businesses are usually inspected every 6 months to years. Lower risk can be much longer in between visits. As we know a lot can happen in 2 years but better than no ratings system. I've noticed a change in manager can easily make a restaurant go up or down in quality.
Yes definitely. Can't understand why anyone would eat in a place with low ratings. Maybe not 100% accurate but you have to ask yourself why if the rating is low. 'Mouse droppings with your dinner sir?'
Definitely go of hygiene ratings there's a reason why some have been given so low and you need a basic standard for all your food, there's a takeaway in my town that's just been given a 0 how they can still open I don't know
wonderingsoul i always wonder how ones with low ratings like that stay open
I don't think they are 100% accurate and you can't trust Uber eats / just eat / deliveroo etc as they tend have different numbers between them (on some restaurants) and tend to be a snapshot at that moment in time when the survey/review was done
My wife will look at these and won't eat or order from anywhere less than a 5 rating so limits our choice.
Myself I'm less concerned tho I do check it. 3 Is probably the lowest I will go.
I remember maybe 30 years ago there was a McDonalds I think (could have been kfc) where they had a huge drainage issue and the pressure backed up and a huge amount of sewage/faceoes poured out onto the floor while people were eating their meal although I'm sure people would have legged it before it got to them. Unfortunately I can't see any record of it online but it was big news at the time maybe local to me. I wonder what hygiene rating they had after that.
My mother used to work for the council as a secretary and wrote up reports of restaurants and issues and for the short time she worked there she had some horror stories to tell.
No as a truck driver ratings are just a guidance on that day!(it's been inspected) I have eaten at many 1*and had the best experience and good quality food also the same at higher rating eg 5*and it's been f....g awful and 5times the price so my experience on the road is if loads of trucks are parked up outside it's gonna be good cos we only eat at the best whatever the rating
I always check and won't order from anywhere with fewer than 4 stars. I've seen too many horrific pictures from 1 or 2 star kitchens.
Definitely,I research before I go in . Saying that you do have to look at the breakdown of the scores ,it’s possible to get good hygiene ratings but be let down on the building and management
I dont usually check that much but I have stopped using one takeaway after their low rating hit the local news with some horrible details - although how accurate those stories were who knows! The only issues is that these ratings are only accurate as at one specific point in time. Just because they were highly rated 1 year ago does not mean that are that good now...
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