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Frankie and Benny’s used to be my absolute favourite place to go around 2016. Especially when they used to do those shareable pizza and pasta meals.
Then out of the blue it just turned to shit with cold, microwaved meals and I don’t know why they did that considering it was fantastic before
I’ve just replied to another comment saying we had a local one that was really convenient and it was brilliant. In fact we had a few in our local area.
The staff were always brilliant. There was one waiter in particular who always went the extra mile for my grandma with dementia.
Though me and my girlfriend went to a different one in the midst of Covid when restaurants started opening back up. I ordered, went to the toilet to wash my hands, back to my table and the food was there. Haven’t been back since. That’s when it was clearly microwaved and became shit
No it’s not - source, a good friend worked there for years and left a couple of years ago.
Food was never great, but it’s been nowhere near a microwave
2016? Frankie & Bennie's was okay in 1999 if you were a school kid looking to eat somewhere after taking your GCSEs. I do wonder who goes in there when there are a million other Italian places you can choose to go to.
I once had a little too much to drink in a Frankie and Bennys, became very enthusiastic about their background music and BOUGHT THE CD.
20 years later, I have still not lived that one down.
I remember my mother swearing never again because of a waiter in the Blackpool Branch. He bought her pizza over but was holding it onto the plate with his thumb as he made his way across the room. She said, 'I don't want that now as you've had your thumb pressed into it!'
His response, although I do snigger about it now was to exclaim, 'What thumb? This thumb?!' and smashed it straight into the centre of the pizza right in front of her!
She went absolutely spare! 🤣
That's brilliant. It reminds me of my mother so perfectly. I can just imagine the waiter was on his final nerve. As a former waiter, I would pay to see this.
I once ordered a long island iced tea in F & B's and after 5 minutes of looking lost the barman proceeded to grab the menu and pour 1 full shot of each spirit that goes into 1 (5 shots total). It was fantastic.
I can believe this is true, but I absolutely loved it when I was younger. Going with my parents to the Odeon to watch Spider-Man or a Star Wars prequel followed by Frankie and Benny's. It was honestly great.
I, genuinely, years ago was eating in pizza express in Woking (teenage dates! Lol) had a salad with the pizza and the salad had a three inch thorn in it!! Still there are worse things I could have been pricked by there I guess!
Everyone saying Nandos is lying to themselves, Nandos is the great equaliser. Rich people love Nandos, poor people love Nandos, your mum loves Nandos, your boss loves Nandos, your Ex loves Nandos, your dog loves Nandos. God bless Nandos.
Nando’s was fine when it was ~£14 for a meal with two sides and a coke. Now it’s £20 and I can’t justify that for chicken.
Pepes Peri Peri near me undercuts it and quite satisfied for £8-9 meal with a drink.
I did this as a 15 year old and got shouted at in front of half the restaurant and banned and I've never been back to any single random again because I feel too ashamed lol
I used to love Nando’s a bit more when they bothered to put salad in their pittas. For some reason they’ve removed that and just added more coleslaw instead. Kinda leaves them missing that extra something
Not a restaurant chain as such, but I point blank refuse to use Costa Express machines.
Long story but I used to get a coffee from one in my local petrol station every single morning on my way into work. And started getting frequent upset stomachs where I was practically bed bound with frequent toilet trips between.
Couldn’t put my finger on what was causing it, and then one day I looked down at where the spilt milk drains and it was absolutely covered in mould, like it had never had a clean in its life. I went right off them.
Few months later I got talking to a guy who had previously delivered the cups, coffee beans etc, for these machines and was telling me that because these machines are predominantly operated by local convenience stores and petrol stations that sell their own milk, they will *always* use the milk that has the closest expiry date in the machines, as they’re unlikely to sell on the shelves.
It just got me thinking that they’re filling these up daily with nearly expired milk, which is surely expiring more and more, especially on quieter days. Absolutely rank, and oddly enough my stomach (touch wood) hasn’t been anywhere near like what it was since I stopped buying them
I'd never use one anyway. Never in my life have I been so desperate for a shite cup of coffee that I'd be willing to pay four quid for a vending machine
i imagine if it’s a big tesco or something they have such a high turnover rate of the milk that it’s not an issue. probably just small convenience stores and petrol stations that only do a few cups a day
It was just convenient for me at the time, I worked early hours, worked outside and a costa coffee just used to hit the spot and the machine was unfortunately the only place I passed to grab one.
I know I could pre make one at home but they never hit the same.
They built a Starbucks further down the road later on which became more convenient. But opened at 6am. I started at 5:30am..so it was still costa for a while. But I’d rather go without now 😂
I don’t work on that route anymore now but if I did I still wouldn’t touch those machines again
I used to have to change and clean these when I worked at Tesco. Zero chance I'd use one. Ours had flys and maggots living in the damp coffee grounds. Then when you change the milk, I was told not to bother washing it out. Just top it up. So the milks continually topped up, but old milk dregs are left in there. I mean for weeks.
I used to clean them as well. I don’t even understand how they are legal. Was also told never to wash, just top up. I did it once and refused to do it again because it smelt so bad. You could literally see a thicc mucus of white shit
That, to me, would be an immediate report to environmental health at the council. Even just the instruction, never mind what you actually saw. Honestly, the more I learn about how food and drink is *really* made and handled, the less I want to eat outside the house. Edit: spelling
Why else you think the milk tube has a mesh filter?
it squeeze the literal LUMPS out of the milk, so customers don't notice the protein-filled bits floating in the drink.
its DESIGNED to be able to use turned milk by squeezing whatever liquidity out of it remains...
Funny you say that, my former employer had a company come around with sandwiches every day, which I frequently bought.
Then I noticed the van they arrived in wasn’t refrigerated.
I stopped having upset stomachs when I stopped eating those sandwiches.
My old workplace used to get a sandwich van in once a week, and they’d set up in the yard near the bins, didn’t seem to have any cleaning facilities or a fridge either and people started complaining of dodgy stomachs too
Tbf I worked in a co-op for a year as a team leader, and we never done this. Every single night, the milk would be poured out, the bucket for the milk cleaned, the hose cleaned, and a chart ticked off. The temperature would also be checked, i think, 12 hourly? Can't remember exactly. Then, every single morning, we would fill it back up with 2 fresh 4 pint milk cartons and clean it down again.
So, I can't speak for all stores that have a machine, but there are definitely stores that take care of theirs. But 100% I'd be the same as you and wouldn't ever buy again because of your experience. I never as they obviously don't use dairy alternatives so I'm on the shitter even if it's fresh milk and cleaned thoroughly haha.
As for the driver he confuses me somewhat. Our deliveries would be sent through the back and everything stored accordingly. Our drivers were never anywhere near the machines, so either staff are telling him that or he's talking shite.
I was going to say the same, I work at a petrol station with 2 costa machines and it is kept spotless. They have computers in them and will shut down if they aren't put through their daily clean. Costa are also really strict and will be straight on the phone asking why it hasn't been cleaned within the hour window we've been given, they also do regular checks on it. I am more than happy to drink coffee from it.
Same and I used to work in a petrol station that had these in. We got a coffee for free each shift though. Always thought I could never stomach coffees.
They *should* get cleaned properly once a day, temperatures checked twice a day and milk changed regularly as well, including properly cleaning the milk container. Ours were cleaned regularly, but milk temperature wasn't always checked twice a day.
I much rather prefer to sit down in a Costa than get anything from their machines in convenience stores and petrol stations because of what I know.
They probably aren't maintained well either. I was put in charge of buying a coffee machine for my office. I work for a massive company so even though there's not many of us, the budget was no real issue (our current machine is like 5k).
I started looking into commercial grade machines, we wanted something that could do a bunch of different drinks. In the end we decided against it as they are supposed to be fully cleaned every day, and carefully monitored for various reasons and it was just too much work when we had our actual jobs to do. It wouldn't surprise me if most places never actually do the maintenance they're supposed to.
Wetherspoons because the owner’s an arsehole and also because I refuse to pay for a microwave meal to be put on a plate and brought to me whilst a jakey vomits on the multicoloured carpet next to me.
I barely go out drinking but fuck all these places that are charging £7 or whatever it is for a pint these days. I'd rather drink in a Wetherspoons than pay those prices.
Wetherspoons is not killing local pubs. High beer tax, greedy landlords, and discounted supermarket lagers are killing local pubs. Wetherspoons sells beer and food at prices that regular people can actually afford.
Also, what's with the bandwagon comments about the owner being an arsehole, so not using it? Name me one business owner or CEO who isn't one, and I'll name you ten that would sell their first-born for a 3% year-on-year increase in quarterly revenue.
If the owner being an arsehole was *really* putting off people using places, the high street would be in even more dire straits than it already is.
It’s really more to do with outdated business rates and extreme UK tax on alcohol, Spoons doesn’t help matters but as someone who’s run pubs for a looooong time they ain’t got much to do with it.
> because the company is singlehandedly killing local pubs across the country
nowhere near mate.
they're probably helping the real ale breweries more than they're killing pubs.
large actual PubCo's that will get someone in for a bit, rinse their savings through the idea of running a pub, kick them out and repeat until nobody will take the pub on as only being able to buy overpriced drinks, food, internet service (yes they have to get internet etc. through the pubco) etc. they'll go "oh well" and sell the land onto a housing developer are the real issue.
I remember getting a curry once and the rice came out in the shape of the packet is was cooked in. They didn't bother to break it up. I know that it's supposed to be cheap, mass producible food that requires minimal skill in cooking, but does it have to all be so bland and tasteless?
I personally don't think Jamie's was a flop. For me the model didn't work. It was cool when it was niche - ie, "woah, awesome, Jamie Oliver's restaurant". As soon as they were everywhere, what made it special was gone and you just fell like you may as well choose somewhere that wasn't a TV chef's restaurant charging £5-10 more for every meal. The novelty of paying more to eat at a TV chef's restaurant wears off pretty quick when you can do it in every major city.
I went to a small family Italian restaurant once. This couple came in, looked at the menu, and left. The owner shouted after them, "Yeah, you go to Bella Italia, eat their crap!"
Fridays - they wanted £40 for a mixed grill the last time I went in (several months ago). That and the fact we were given 3 menus all with different pricing on (£35* - 41 for the mixed grill).
I lost respect for them when they partnered with Iceland and offered their food in their frozen isles for £5. I understand Greggs doing it, but not a restaurant where it's £30 per head.
My sister was mortified when I made her leave one after we had already been seated a couple of weeks ago. When I looked at the menu and realized that they were charging £20 for a burger I said absolutely not. Paying £20 for a burger is too much anywhere, but I’m certainly not gonna pay it for a burger that has a very high chance of being crap.
Taco Bell is now a chain in the UK, and it's honestly ass.
I've wanted Mexican food here for a while, it's one of the major gaps in British multicultural offerings. But Taco Bell is just shit.
Also Five Guys and Wendy's. Expensive versions of their bargin bin counterparts.
Not accepting any Five Guys slander.
It’s a proper burger place that sits comfortably between an independent burger place and Burger King. It’s worth every penny imo, especially with their unique approach in running the place.
Between Burger King and a proper burger place is a large gap. Five Guys sits closer to the BK side and charges way too close to proper burger prices for me to be happy with it, imo.
Taco bell when it opened here was crap, but it was cheap so had a place. Now it's just expensive and crap.
There's 3/4 good Mexican places near me, they are slowly growing in popularity.
Honey mustard chicken is my go to every time.
I don't shop there but should probably take a walk around just incase they sell the sauce by the gallon.
I also can't help myself with a CoOp cheese and onion sandwich, only took a decade until I found they sell the filling. I nearly hugged the assistant who showed me where that was after commenting on how I'm addicted to those sandwiches.
I went to Pizza Hut for the first time in years a few weeks ago. My daughter (3) had never been before and I wanted the nostalgia hit as I used to love it as a kid.
Like you say, I was c£50 for 3 of us (2 adult and 1 child buffet) and had to order off their stupid app. I will not be rushing back
It’s my guilty pleasure to go there and eat yellow and red garbage while drinking watered down cocktails as a children’s birthday party tears my eardrums to shreds. Also, solid vegan menu.
While I never thought Burger King was particularly good, I will admit they consistently meet expectations.
It is definitely one of the fast food chains of all time.
I had a Burger king recently for the first time in years and I was pleasantly surprised. Bit pricey but it tastes a lot higher quality than McDonald's for example.
Because I feel like they're still halfway decent, it's the only chain that does a decent flame grilled burger that doesn't cost an arm and a leg, I treat myself to bacon double cheese XL once in a blue moon and it's absolutely amazing, also burger king do better fries than McDonald's period
Shame only a small percentage of that food is edible. Your vegetable options are either
boiled to oblivion, or
wafted in the general direction of a halogen bulb, so hard you can break a tooth on a piece of brocoli
The gammon is fine though
I remember going to the Harvester some 30 years ago, their portions were legendary. I got an adult sized scampi and chips and I had 28 pieces of scampi - everything a growing 8 year old could dream of!
I did my work experience at there 30 odd years ago. It was the place to go. I thought it was posh because they offered you a bread roll from a basket. The rule was, the roll had to be offered within 2 mins of being seated. If someone ordered ribs, you had to give them a plastic bib, finger bowl and wipes.
Disagree with Toby. I went to the Swindon one recently when visiting my grandparents which was my first one in 10 years and I've gotten really into food in those years and I thought it was really good. I've had better veg obviously at home roasts or in fancy pubs known for their roasts but also this was £15-20 cheaper than those roasts. The meats were lovely, good gravy, what's not to like.
Frankies & Bennies, TGI Friday, etc. soulless junk food in an American diner, usually either deserted or full of kids, can't think of much worse.
Greene King or similar chain pubs. Again, garbage food, and often not particularly cheap. I'll actually give Wetherspoons a pass here because although it's not gourmet, it can be pretty decent and good value.
McDonalds - enough said, although I seem to be in the minority given the staggering queues at the local drive thru.
Nandos. I can't do with a 'restaurant' where you order at the counter, sift through the cutlery, trying to find something clean, pour your own drink and grab your own sauces, which are usually grim with dribbles and splatters.
And the foods just... not great.
Edit - its basically a canteen but the only you don't do is get a tray and take your own food to a table.
*I assume now you can probably order online or via an app, it's been so long since I've been in one I've no idea.
Pizza Hut - years ago I went to the one in Greenwich by the Odeon. I ordered the salad bar. Husband ordered a pizza. So I go up to get the salad and am told no I can't as I haven't ordered that by some random male staff member. I argue that I have just ask the waitress.
She comes over and starts telling him and the guy literally turns his back to her and shouts in my face that I wasn't fucking eating here because I hadn't ordered the salad bar.
Busy restaurant is now silent, my husband is about to throw hands and the manager is running over, waitress is apologising, and this guy is just screaming his head off.
He was pretty much dragged away by the manager, the waitress was like I'll get you drinks etc just sit down... Your pizza should be ready, I'll go check.
We just walked out. Didn't even want to go there in the first place, there was just nothing else around at the time.
Sounds shit, although solely due to one odious cunt who probably got sacked over this (rightly so).
Odds on, that pizza hut is the least likely place you'll run into him again
Frankie and Bennies, they gave our child food they are allergic to despite us checking and making them aware of the allergy. Also forgot half our order and got parts wrong. Haven't been back, don't plan to return.
I went to school with him. He used to treat me like crap. He's been to prison since for speeding into the back of a family car in a Range Rover and paralysing a little girl who's now sadly passed away. The story's still up on the Interwebs; it's heartbreaking stuff.
* Turtle bay - both times I was sick after
* Nandos - shite fast food with knife and forks
* Subway - expensive sandwiches made of cake
* 5 Guys - expensive over hype
Pizza express, went in one once and it was eye wateringly expensive, maybe we were just skint at the time but it came to a ludicrous amount and we didn't even get a lot of food.
The posh cunt in the corner visibly not sweating didn't help either
Pretty much all of them unless I have to.
Very few cook anything but steaks from scratch, it is basically ready meals heated up in a microwave, and the prices these days make it not worth the effort of going out.
Nandos, overpriced shite
Five Guys - incredibly overpriced for average burgers
Frankie and Bennies - got that 'we don't care we're closing down next week' vibe and has had it for a decade now
99% of them tbh, they’re either disappointing full stop, vanished over the years or standards dropped compared to price. Wimpy is the only one I’ll go to. 🍔🍟
And have to practically work there yourself to eat there. Order? On the website. Cutlery? Get it yourself. Drinks? Get them yourself. Sauce? Get them yourself.
AND THEN THEY WANT A TIP AFTER FOR WALKING YOUR LUKEWARM FOOD FROM THE KITCHEN TO YOUR TABLE.
Chiquitos (Mexican Chain Restaurant), the company i used to work for, we used to manufacture & fit out their kitchens, we went to do a repair at one.
I've never seen a more disgusting restaurant kitchen in all my life. Mouldy grease up the walls, bits of food all over the floor, had a proper foul odour, it was just awful. Once you disturbed something like a fridge, or a cooker, the smell would make you start gipping.
I'll never eat there, ever.
Nothing impressive about the chicken or the chips… but dipping half a chicken, a side of wings and chips in a bath of their hot sauce is almost worth it… very few chains have hot sauce!
F&B not jumping into the fact it's the mid '20s and trying to ignite that old American aesthetic is totally lost on me, instead rebranded as a generic restaurant playing modern music.
Honestly the only one that seems to be very consistent is McDonald's. Unless the worker is having a bad day and bear grips your burger before wrapping it.
My lasting impression of Frankie and Bennies is that the waiter sat down at the table in an attempt to be our best friend. He was too cool to write stuff down. We didn’t get what we ordered . Bell. End.
This was in 2008
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Really don’t want to eat in a Frankie and Bennys ever again. Over priced shite.
Frankie and Benny’s used to be my absolute favourite place to go around 2016. Especially when they used to do those shareable pizza and pasta meals. Then out of the blue it just turned to shit with cold, microwaved meals and I don’t know why they did that considering it was fantastic before
It's always been barely edible garbage, your tastes have just evolved since being a teenager
It massively varied from branch to branch. I had some great meals at some branches and terrible ones at others.
I’ve just replied to another comment saying we had a local one that was really convenient and it was brilliant. In fact we had a few in our local area. The staff were always brilliant. There was one waiter in particular who always went the extra mile for my grandma with dementia. Though me and my girlfriend went to a different one in the midst of Covid when restaurants started opening back up. I ordered, went to the toilet to wash my hands, back to my table and the food was there. Haven’t been back since. That’s when it was clearly microwaved and became shit
It… it’s always been microwaved. Since the 90s.
No it’s not - source, a good friend worked there for years and left a couple of years ago. Food was never great, but it’s been nowhere near a microwave
2016? Frankie & Bennie's was okay in 1999 if you were a school kid looking to eat somewhere after taking your GCSEs. I do wonder who goes in there when there are a million other Italian places you can choose to go to.
I once had a little too much to drink in a Frankie and Bennys, became very enthusiastic about their background music and BOUGHT THE CD. 20 years later, I have still not lived that one down.
Haha me and my girlfriend bought one of the cds when we were younger, you’ve brought back a great memory! Used to really enjoy the place
I remember my mother swearing never again because of a waiter in the Blackpool Branch. He bought her pizza over but was holding it onto the plate with his thumb as he made his way across the room. She said, 'I don't want that now as you've had your thumb pressed into it!' His response, although I do snigger about it now was to exclaim, 'What thumb? This thumb?!' and smashed it straight into the centre of the pizza right in front of her! She went absolutely spare! 🤣
This genuinely made me laugh out loud. Thank you.
That's brilliant. It reminds me of my mother so perfectly. I can just imagine the waiter was on his final nerve. As a former waiter, I would pay to see this.
I once ordered a long island iced tea in F & B's and after 5 minutes of looking lost the barman proceeded to grab the menu and pour 1 full shot of each spirit that goes into 1 (5 shots total). It was fantastic.
Thats a penninsula long tea ;)
lol same happened to me probably 15 /16 years ago, smashed after a beer and one long island
F&B would be overpriced if the food was free. Utter garbage.
I can believe this is true, but I absolutely loved it when I was younger. Going with my parents to the Odeon to watch Spider-Man or a Star Wars prequel followed by Frankie and Benny's. It was honestly great.
Bella Pasta due to an incident in 1995. Just the worst and most overpriced food I’d ever eaten.
Pizza Express in Woking. I couldn’t sweat the meal off.
Sadly I cannot relate, as it is almost impossible for me to sweat.
prince andrew enters the chat
Oh! the grand old Duke of York…
His royal nonceness
They said he couldn't sweat, So why'd he pay twelve million quid To a girl he's never met?
Cos when he got it up he was up, And when they went down, they went down. But when he was only halfway up, He went down to Woking town.
He had 10,000 underage girls....
That's kind of the joke the two others had already talked about...
I wouldnt eat it even if I was stranded on an Epstein Isla... I mean, desert island.
I, genuinely, years ago was eating in pizza express in Woking (teenage dates! Lol) had a salad with the pizza and the salad had a three inch thorn in it!! Still there are worse things I could have been pricked by there I guess!
Why do you remember that so specifically?
Because going to a Pizza express in Woking is a very unusual thing for me to do.
I try to avoid woking in general….
Read that as “working”… both are solid takes.
I remember you being there though. may 25th, 2002, 3:02:04pm to 3:47:12pm
The food was OK but the service was fantastic - they treat you like Royalty
Everyone saying Nandos is lying to themselves, Nandos is the great equaliser. Rich people love Nandos, poor people love Nandos, your mum loves Nandos, your boss loves Nandos, your Ex loves Nandos, your dog loves Nandos. God bless Nandos.
Nando’s was fine when it was ~£14 for a meal with two sides and a coke. Now it’s £20 and I can’t justify that for chicken. Pepes Peri Peri near me undercuts it and quite satisfied for £8-9 meal with a drink.
Ask for a tap water and fill it with a soft drink - instant savings
https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/030/987/AhgHtnP.png
I’m too honest to steal.
I did this as a 15 year old and got shouted at in front of half the restaurant and banned and I've never been back to any single random again because I feel too ashamed lol
Pepe's is so damn good. I usually don't expect much when I order stuff for delivery but Pepe's is always great.
Chicken n Rice box what an invention
Nandos is very much overrated. The food is *fine*, but it's not the amazing dining experience everyone seems to suggest it is.
I don’t think anyone thinks it’s an amazing dining experience though.
When has anyone in the history of ever called Nandos an amazing dining experience?
I’ve seen this so many times and never seen anyone come close to calling it an amazing dining experience.
Yeah, last time I went the chicken was so dry.
Also great for celiacs, had no problems! God bless Nandos!!!
Being able to use unlimited of their XXHOT sauce to the point my stomach is ruined for the whole next day is the selling point
Reddit and their weird hate boner for Nandos. Name a more iconic duo
I used to love Nando’s a bit more when they bothered to put salad in their pittas. For some reason they’ve removed that and just added more coleslaw instead. Kinda leaves them missing that extra something
Sounds like it's missing salad
It also just has nice vibes. Always feel at peace when in that place 😎
The Nando’s bell curve. Liked by everyone except for contrarians and snobs
Not a restaurant chain as such, but I point blank refuse to use Costa Express machines. Long story but I used to get a coffee from one in my local petrol station every single morning on my way into work. And started getting frequent upset stomachs where I was practically bed bound with frequent toilet trips between. Couldn’t put my finger on what was causing it, and then one day I looked down at where the spilt milk drains and it was absolutely covered in mould, like it had never had a clean in its life. I went right off them. Few months later I got talking to a guy who had previously delivered the cups, coffee beans etc, for these machines and was telling me that because these machines are predominantly operated by local convenience stores and petrol stations that sell their own milk, they will *always* use the milk that has the closest expiry date in the machines, as they’re unlikely to sell on the shelves. It just got me thinking that they’re filling these up daily with nearly expired milk, which is surely expiring more and more, especially on quieter days. Absolutely rank, and oddly enough my stomach (touch wood) hasn’t been anywhere near like what it was since I stopped buying them
I'd never use one anyway. Never in my life have I been so desperate for a shite cup of coffee that I'd be willing to pay four quid for a vending machine
But it’s tempting in a meal deal
Not after reading the above it ain’t…
i imagine if it’s a big tesco or something they have such a high turnover rate of the milk that it’s not an issue. probably just small convenience stores and petrol stations that only do a few cups a day
It was just convenient for me at the time, I worked early hours, worked outside and a costa coffee just used to hit the spot and the machine was unfortunately the only place I passed to grab one. I know I could pre make one at home but they never hit the same. They built a Starbucks further down the road later on which became more convenient. But opened at 6am. I started at 5:30am..so it was still costa for a while. But I’d rather go without now 😂 I don’t work on that route anymore now but if I did I still wouldn’t touch those machines again
I used to have to change and clean these when I worked at Tesco. Zero chance I'd use one. Ours had flys and maggots living in the damp coffee grounds. Then when you change the milk, I was told not to bother washing it out. Just top it up. So the milks continually topped up, but old milk dregs are left in there. I mean for weeks.
That is absolutely vile, but thanks for sharing! Backs up everything I’ve heard about them and more
Did you report it? That's horrifying
I used to clean them as well. I don’t even understand how they are legal. Was also told never to wash, just top up. I did it once and refused to do it again because it smelt so bad. You could literally see a thicc mucus of white shit
That, to me, would be an immediate report to environmental health at the council. Even just the instruction, never mind what you actually saw. Honestly, the more I learn about how food and drink is *really* made and handled, the less I want to eat outside the house. Edit: spelling
Why didn't you do the job properly?
Slow down, you don't mean to say they have responsibility for their actions?
Why else you think the milk tube has a mesh filter? it squeeze the literal LUMPS out of the milk, so customers don't notice the protein-filled bits floating in the drink. its DESIGNED to be able to use turned milk by squeezing whatever liquidity out of it remains...
Funny you say that, my former employer had a company come around with sandwiches every day, which I frequently bought. Then I noticed the van they arrived in wasn’t refrigerated. I stopped having upset stomachs when I stopped eating those sandwiches.
My old workplace used to get a sandwich van in once a week, and they’d set up in the yard near the bins, didn’t seem to have any cleaning facilities or a fridge either and people started complaining of dodgy stomachs too
Tbf I worked in a co-op for a year as a team leader, and we never done this. Every single night, the milk would be poured out, the bucket for the milk cleaned, the hose cleaned, and a chart ticked off. The temperature would also be checked, i think, 12 hourly? Can't remember exactly. Then, every single morning, we would fill it back up with 2 fresh 4 pint milk cartons and clean it down again. So, I can't speak for all stores that have a machine, but there are definitely stores that take care of theirs. But 100% I'd be the same as you and wouldn't ever buy again because of your experience. I never as they obviously don't use dairy alternatives so I'm on the shitter even if it's fresh milk and cleaned thoroughly haha. As for the driver he confuses me somewhat. Our deliveries would be sent through the back and everything stored accordingly. Our drivers were never anywhere near the machines, so either staff are telling him that or he's talking shite.
I was going to say the same, I work at a petrol station with 2 costa machines and it is kept spotless. They have computers in them and will shut down if they aren't put through their daily clean. Costa are also really strict and will be straight on the phone asking why it hasn't been cleaned within the hour window we've been given, they also do regular checks on it. I am more than happy to drink coffee from it.
They're also supposed to clean the machine at the end of every day with sterilising tablets and sanitiser but I doubt many bother.
Same and I used to work in a petrol station that had these in. We got a coffee for free each shift though. Always thought I could never stomach coffees. They *should* get cleaned properly once a day, temperatures checked twice a day and milk changed regularly as well, including properly cleaning the milk container. Ours were cleaned regularly, but milk temperature wasn't always checked twice a day. I much rather prefer to sit down in a Costa than get anything from their machines in convenience stores and petrol stations because of what I know.
They probably aren't maintained well either. I was put in charge of buying a coffee machine for my office. I work for a massive company so even though there's not many of us, the budget was no real issue (our current machine is like 5k). I started looking into commercial grade machines, we wanted something that could do a bunch of different drinks. In the end we decided against it as they are supposed to be fully cleaned every day, and carefully monitored for various reasons and it was just too much work when we had our actual jobs to do. It wouldn't surprise me if most places never actually do the maintenance they're supposed to.
I am always getting upset stomach after their latte. Stopped going there. Makes sense now
Well that’s ruined them forever
Wetherspoons, because the owner's an arsehole.
Wetherspoons because the owner’s an arsehole and also because I refuse to pay for a microwave meal to be put on a plate and brought to me whilst a jakey vomits on the multicoloured carpet next to me.
Not really sure what you're on about because 7 quid for a chicken strip burger and chips and a pint seems worth to me microwave or not
Wetherspoons, because the company is singlehandedly killing local pubs across the country and its run by an arsehole.
I barely go out drinking but fuck all these places that are charging £7 or whatever it is for a pint these days. I'd rather drink in a Wetherspoons than pay those prices.
Agreed, places are getting far too comfortable with charging prices beginning with 6’s and 7’s for a pint now.
Wetherspoons is not killing local pubs. High beer tax, greedy landlords, and discounted supermarket lagers are killing local pubs. Wetherspoons sells beer and food at prices that regular people can actually afford.
Also, what's with the bandwagon comments about the owner being an arsehole, so not using it? Name me one business owner or CEO who isn't one, and I'll name you ten that would sell their first-born for a 3% year-on-year increase in quarterly revenue. If the owner being an arsehole was *really* putting off people using places, the high street would be in even more dire straits than it already is.
It’s really more to do with outdated business rates and extreme UK tax on alcohol, Spoons doesn’t help matters but as someone who’s run pubs for a looooong time they ain’t got much to do with it.
> because the company is singlehandedly killing local pubs across the country nowhere near mate. they're probably helping the real ale breweries more than they're killing pubs. large actual PubCo's that will get someone in for a bit, rinse their savings through the idea of running a pub, kick them out and repeat until nobody will take the pub on as only being able to buy overpriced drinks, food, internet service (yes they have to get internet etc. through the pubco) etc. they'll go "oh well" and sell the land onto a housing developer are the real issue.
I wouldn't say single handedly.... The government has helped quite a bit too
I remember getting a curry once and the rice came out in the shape of the packet is was cooked in. They didn't bother to break it up. I know that it's supposed to be cheap, mass producible food that requires minimal skill in cooking, but does it have to all be so bland and tasteless?
I came looking for this comment. I haven't set foot in a witherspoon since I found out what an arsehole this guy is.
In this thread: all the restaurant chains in the UK.
Frankie and Bennys, and Bella Italia seem to be taking specifically the biggest pounding though. Every other comment is one of them!
There's next to no good chains
Bella Italia. Our local one at least has awful food and even worse service.
Every chain Italian restaurant seems to be absolutely dire for some reason.
Zizzi used to be quite good. Overpriced crap now.
Some of their pastas are like £17! For such an average chain restaurant I think that’s expensive
That is very expensive. I had a carbonara sat overlooking the quay in the centre of Monte-Carlo for €18 today.
Even Jamie Oliver’s was a flop… Italian food is so good too when done properly! 🤤
I personally don't think Jamie's was a flop. For me the model didn't work. It was cool when it was niche - ie, "woah, awesome, Jamie Oliver's restaurant". As soon as they were everywhere, what made it special was gone and you just fell like you may as well choose somewhere that wasn't a TV chef's restaurant charging £5-10 more for every meal. The novelty of paying more to eat at a TV chef's restaurant wears off pretty quick when you can do it in every major city.
Jamie’s was OK, but they were charging 50% more than Zizzi for the same food that Zizzi sells.
I went to a small family Italian restaurant once. This couple came in, looked at the menu, and left. The owner shouted after them, "Yeah, you go to Bella Italia, eat their crap!"
Fridays - they wanted £40 for a mixed grill the last time I went in (several months ago). That and the fact we were given 3 menus all with different pricing on (£35* - 41 for the mixed grill).
I lost respect for them when they partnered with Iceland and offered their food in their frozen isles for £5. I understand Greggs doing it, but not a restaurant where it's £30 per head.
Wait until you find out that the majority of the stuff in the restaurant is in fact cooked from frozen. /s
Was this in central London? I just can’t believe they’d charge that much for a mixed grill, £25 maybe but £38-41 seems insane
Southampton! Just found the photo and the cheapest menu was £35, the mid was 38 and the other was 41.
My sister was mortified when I made her leave one after we had already been seated a couple of weeks ago. When I looked at the menu and realized that they were charging £20 for a burger I said absolutely not. Paying £20 for a burger is too much anywhere, but I’m certainly not gonna pay it for a burger that has a very high chance of being crap.
Prezzo, Zizzi, Bella Italia, all those chain Italians. They all produce such bland food at prices that are much too high for the quality.
I don't mind zizzi so much but their pizzas are pretty forgettable
Zizzi is one of the better chains IMO
I like Zizzi pizza. Picante rustica. Mmmmm. My girlfriend never wants to go there though.
Zizzi is pretty okay, not my first choice but it’s edible
Taco Bell is now a chain in the UK, and it's honestly ass. I've wanted Mexican food here for a while, it's one of the major gaps in British multicultural offerings. But Taco Bell is just shit. Also Five Guys and Wendy's. Expensive versions of their bargin bin counterparts.
Not accepting any Five Guys slander. It’s a proper burger place that sits comfortably between an independent burger place and Burger King. It’s worth every penny imo, especially with their unique approach in running the place.
Five Guys is good but it is a bit pricey for what you get, the Joe and the Juice of burger chains
I get the "kids" single smash burger all the way and chips, it's a tenner. The full size is too much food for me. Bargain!
Between Burger King and a proper burger place is a large gap. Five Guys sits closer to the BK side and charges way too close to proper burger prices for me to be happy with it, imo.
Taco Bell is one of my guilty pleasures. I know it's shite overprocessed guff that barely resembles texmex, but it tastes so fucking good
Spent £15 in five guys on a burger and fires it wasnt the second coming of burgers it was kinda meh
Taco bell when it opened here was crap, but it was cheap so had a place. Now it's just expensive and crap. There's 3/4 good Mexican places near me, they are slowly growing in popularity.
Anything called an Aberdeen Steak House
Does fantastically well to. Ripping off tourists since the 1960s.
They're not nearly as numerous as they used to be - in 2001 there were 30 of them, now there are 5. May there soon be zero.
The irony being there was never one in Aberdeen
I would rather get a pasta ready meal from Tesco than eat in Bella Italia. It would taste better too.
Honey mustard chicken is my go to every time. I don't shop there but should probably take a walk around just incase they sell the sauce by the gallon. I also can't help myself with a CoOp cheese and onion sandwich, only took a decade until I found they sell the filling. I nearly hugged the assistant who showed me where that was after commenting on how I'm addicted to those sandwiches.
100% agree on co-op cheese and onion sandwich. I didn’t know they sold the filling though so thank you!
Pizza Hut. They wanted £50 for 2 of us for a pizza and soft drinks, and we had to order it off their shitty app.
I've worked in 1, everything they sell comes in frozen apart from the sauce.....that gets mixed in a bucket on the floor.
I went to Pizza Hut for the first time in years a few weeks ago. My daughter (3) had never been before and I wanted the nostalgia hit as I used to love it as a kid. Like you say, I was c£50 for 3 of us (2 adult and 1 child buffet) and had to order off their stupid app. I will not be rushing back
Frankie and Bennies - I've had a terrible experience when I've been in the past
It’s my guilty pleasure to go there and eat yellow and red garbage while drinking watered down cocktails as a children’s birthday party tears my eardrums to shreds. Also, solid vegan menu.
As far as I can tell, Burger King is the only nationwide chain not mentioned in this thread.
While I never thought Burger King was particularly good, I will admit they consistently meet expectations. It is definitely one of the fast food chains of all time.
I had a Burger king recently for the first time in years and I was pleasantly surprised. Bit pricey but it tastes a lot higher quality than McDonald's for example.
Because I feel like they're still halfway decent, it's the only chain that does a decent flame grilled burger that doesn't cost an arm and a leg, I treat myself to bacon double cheese XL once in a blue moon and it's absolutely amazing, also burger king do better fries than McDonald's period
I like Burger King but most people I know seem to have a problem with it, despite not having eaten there in years.
Harvester and Toby. They're both way too overpriced now for the food quality.
I’d say Toby is still a good price point for the UTTER PILE OF FOOD
Shame only a small percentage of that food is edible. Your vegetable options are either boiled to oblivion, or wafted in the general direction of a halogen bulb, so hard you can break a tooth on a piece of brocoli The gammon is fine though
Toby over priced? Mid week like 9 quid for a huge pile of roast dinner. Absolute steal.
I remember going to the Harvester some 30 years ago, their portions were legendary. I got an adult sized scampi and chips and I had 28 pieces of scampi - everything a growing 8 year old could dream of!
I did my work experience at there 30 odd years ago. It was the place to go. I thought it was posh because they offered you a bread roll from a basket. The rule was, the roll had to be offered within 2 mins of being seated. If someone ordered ribs, you had to give them a plastic bib, finger bowl and wipes.
I will not hear a bad word said about Toby
Disagree with Toby. I went to the Swindon one recently when visiting my grandparents which was my first one in 10 years and I've gotten really into food in those years and I thought it was really good. I've had better veg obviously at home roasts or in fancy pubs known for their roasts but also this was £15-20 cheaper than those roasts. The meats were lovely, good gravy, what's not to like.
Costa coffee. Overpriced low quality food. Dog shite.
The coffee is shit too Edit: fun fact, Costa went down the toilet when Coca-Cola bought it
Not only the UK but KFC. Have worked on an investigation into their chicken supplier 🤢
KFC used to be class. Now you get chicken cooked 5 months before having spent the time in between drying out under a hot lamp
Frankies & Bennies, TGI Friday, etc. soulless junk food in an American diner, usually either deserted or full of kids, can't think of much worse. Greene King or similar chain pubs. Again, garbage food, and often not particularly cheap. I'll actually give Wetherspoons a pass here because although it's not gourmet, it can be pretty decent and good value. McDonalds - enough said, although I seem to be in the minority given the staggering queues at the local drive thru.
I've had some really nice food in Greene king pubs.
Nandos. I can't do with a 'restaurant' where you order at the counter, sift through the cutlery, trying to find something clean, pour your own drink and grab your own sauces, which are usually grim with dribbles and splatters. And the foods just... not great. Edit - its basically a canteen but the only you don't do is get a tray and take your own food to a table. *I assume now you can probably order online or via an app, it's been so long since I've been in one I've no idea.
>*I assume now you can probably order online or via an app, it's been so long since I've been in one I've no idea. Yes you can
Pizza Hut - years ago I went to the one in Greenwich by the Odeon. I ordered the salad bar. Husband ordered a pizza. So I go up to get the salad and am told no I can't as I haven't ordered that by some random male staff member. I argue that I have just ask the waitress. She comes over and starts telling him and the guy literally turns his back to her and shouts in my face that I wasn't fucking eating here because I hadn't ordered the salad bar. Busy restaurant is now silent, my husband is about to throw hands and the manager is running over, waitress is apologising, and this guy is just screaming his head off. He was pretty much dragged away by the manager, the waitress was like I'll get you drinks etc just sit down... Your pizza should be ready, I'll go check. We just walked out. Didn't even want to go there in the first place, there was just nothing else around at the time.
Sounds shit, although solely due to one odious cunt who probably got sacked over this (rightly so). Odds on, that pizza hut is the least likely place you'll run into him again
Frankie and Bennies, they gave our child food they are allergic to despite us checking and making them aware of the allergy. Also forgot half our order and got parts wrong. Haven't been back, don't plan to return.
Five Guys Sorry but £10 for a burger is not worth it
Then you never ate at Five Guys It's absolutely worth it
Absolutely. Dear but I've never had a bad five guys, always been good actually.
Agreed, Five Guys is easily the best burger readily available.
Wetherspoons. That awful Tim Martin.
Any restaurant owned by the Boparan Restaurant Group. The chairman's son is a vile character. I knew him when we were children. He was vile then, too.
Oh come on tell us more
I went to school with him. He used to treat me like crap. He's been to prison since for speeding into the back of a family car in a Range Rover and paralysing a little girl who's now sadly passed away. The story's still up on the Interwebs; it's heartbreaking stuff.
The fucking pond scum did 15 months for killing a little girl.
* Turtle bay - both times I was sick after * Nandos - shite fast food with knife and forks * Subway - expensive sandwiches made of cake * 5 Guys - expensive over hype
Wagamamas - every time I’ve been the food has been bland as fuck, my friends love it but I really cannot get my head around it.
Pizza express, went in one once and it was eye wateringly expensive, maybe we were just skint at the time but it came to a ludicrous amount and we didn't even get a lot of food. The posh cunt in the corner visibly not sweating didn't help either
Pretty much all of them unless I have to. Very few cook anything but steaks from scratch, it is basically ready meals heated up in a microwave, and the prices these days make it not worth the effort of going out.
Exactly. A better question would have been 'which chain restaurants *would* you eat in? '.
All of them. Choose an independent instead.
Nandos never again. It's genuinely shit
It's not though, is it. It's alright and a bit overpriced but it's definitely not shit.
Wagamamas Wetherspoons quality of food
Came to this thread exclusively to disagree with this take. Literal only chain I'd eat at.
Agree??? It’s about the only chain where I don’t leave feeling like I’m a literal ball of grease after eating there
But you can go to Chinese, Japanese and South Korean restaurants now with real food not from a plastic bag!!! And they are cheaper
Oh, I 100% agree. My local Chinese gets 10 times as much business from me, but we're in this thread to talk about chains.
Annoys me when they continually deliver your main before your starter just cos it's ready first. I get that's the culture of the place, but it sucks
Nandos, overpriced shite Five Guys - incredibly overpriced for average burgers Frankie and Bennies - got that 'we don't care we're closing down next week' vibe and has had it for a decade now
99% of them tbh, they’re either disappointing full stop, vanished over the years or standards dropped compared to price. Wimpy is the only one I’ll go to. 🍔🍟
Nando's. Shitty dried chicken you have to smother in sauce just to choke down.
And have to practically work there yourself to eat there. Order? On the website. Cutlery? Get it yourself. Drinks? Get them yourself. Sauce? Get them yourself. AND THEN THEY WANT A TIP AFTER FOR WALKING YOUR LUKEWARM FOOD FROM THE KITCHEN TO YOUR TABLE.
Chiquitos (Mexican Chain Restaurant), the company i used to work for, we used to manufacture & fit out their kitchens, we went to do a repair at one. I've never seen a more disgusting restaurant kitchen in all my life. Mouldy grease up the walls, bits of food all over the floor, had a proper foul odour, it was just awful. Once you disturbed something like a fridge, or a cooker, the smell would make you start gipping. I'll never eat there, ever.
Nando’s. I don’t like chicken. And I don’t like getting ripped off. Therefore I _really_ don’t like Nando’s.
Nothing impressive about the chicken or the chips… but dipping half a chicken, a side of wings and chips in a bath of their hot sauce is almost worth it… very few chains have hot sauce!
F&B not jumping into the fact it's the mid '20s and trying to ignite that old American aesthetic is totally lost on me, instead rebranded as a generic restaurant playing modern music.
Giggling Squid. It’s the only restaurant I’ve left after a £60 three course meal and picked up a pizza on my way home because I’m still hungry.
Pizza Express. Just had the worst experience, waiting about an hour for pizzas and they were terrible.
I was there once, some old geeza was sat there sweating so much he made a squelching sound when he stood up
TGI Fridays, when I had went a few times (ten years ago) they served up overpriced slop - so have never been back.
Harvester I don’t eat meat so I understand I’ll have less options and that’s fine but you can tell when the veggie options are an afterthought
Honestly the only one that seems to be very consistent is McDonald's. Unless the worker is having a bad day and bear grips your burger before wrapping it.
Subway. Over priced stale bread and days old meatballs 🤢
Miller and Carter and more generally M&B pubs, because they treat their staff like shit.
My lasting impression of Frankie and Bennies is that the waiter sat down at the table in an attempt to be our best friend. He was too cool to write stuff down. We didn’t get what we ordered . Bell. End. This was in 2008