Man, I am so glad I never worked in food service.

Dokushin: What's that? CSB? Sure, sit down.

I used to work at a McDonalds somewhere in the northern mountains of Georgia. (Just so you know you aren't eating there.)

One day, the milkshake machine stops working. Just kind of freezes up. Well, no problem. We'll check it out when we're not so busy. We ignore it for a little while. We stop ignoring it at the exact time something starts oozing out of the front panel.

Spoiled milk? You wish, sugarpants. Maggots. A thick, juicy swarm of maggots that had completely coated the mix reservoir, worked its way into the tubes, and took over the front panel. Writhing white maggots in clear grey slime. Turns out the maintenance (including cleaning) of the ice cream machine had been skipped for a few days in a row. End result? Ugh. Don't make me think about it any more. It's exactly as bad as you're afraid it may have been. We had to keep cleaning off the front so no one would see. The coffee machines can dispense scalding hot water -- that was my weapon of choice.

Managers tried to pull off a cover up. I don't think it was ever officially reported (if I was thirty instead of sixteen that may have been different), but milkshake sales dropped off the radar for a while.

/ Still love Big Macs

I was with a coworker years ago when he was showing me how he cleaned beer lines. I asked him how often the competitor's cleaned theirs. He said he hadn't seen anyone in there in a while. He stuck his pen up the faucet & pulled it out & it was covered in a slimy, yeast infection. The smell alone about made me puke. It doesn't take too long to get that way either.

One Papa John's I worked at, the area manager was such a hardliner about this that he would through food out if it was one day over the use-by. 90% of the food was still good, although day over dough tends to be kinda...ew. While part of me appreciated that, another part lamented the waste of food going on.

Y'all think only McDs does this? Restaurants of any kind operate on a very tight budget. If a nice filet-mignon was just finished cooking, then fell on the floor and was stepped on by the chefs filthy sneakers that he walked to work in..over spit, dirt, and piss..you really think he's grilling you a new one?
Psshhhhawww...pick it up, wipe it off (maybe), and back on the plate it goes. Chef stays on schedule and you are none the wiser.

agoodamerican: ive seen stuff that keep me from ever eating there

You mean like the mechanically separated, formed food-type byproduct they serve to their customers?

mouse, gerbil, whatever. it's still kinky

It's not the droppings you have to worry about. Mice piss everywhere they go, to leave a scent trail they can follow home in the morning. Heh...

gross stuff happened when i worked my mcdonolds as well ive seen stuff that keep me from ever eating there

While I agree that C is unacceptable, A and B would have been ridiculous overreactions.