panic... EHO due in

[the_seraphim]

and it wont get done in time... trust me on this... how can i express my desire not to get bad marks from the health officer in terms the waitstaff can understand... i caught on of the little b$%&ards actually eating a chip of a plate they were about to take out!

wtf do i do with that? ive tried making extra chips and leaving them somewhere and telling them they can eat THOSE chips only... to watch them walk past them to the other ones...

im --> <-- this close to sacking the lot and re-hiring polish people... at least they appreciate the job not take it for granted

[cookingwithfat]

Well, you already answered your question... sack 'em. I would suggest simply writing down what you expect, distributing the list to all involved, and saying, "break any of these rules and don't bother coming in." First one that eats a chip - or French fry - or anything for that matter that is not specifically for them, gets canned. I had a problem with wait staff showing up late to avoid doing their side work... I told them the next person who was even so much as a minute late was gone. Sure enough, two days later the one waiter comes in 15 minutes late, I said, "you're done." Much complaining, and bla bla bla , "my car stalled... my sister was throwing up... I was... " I don't even know what. I said, "you could have called, you didn't, your gone." No one has been late since. Problem solved. Do it. Do it hard. Do it fast. If you are not totally sure in your standards they will walk all over you.

[Jacaranda]

I'm with CWF: you could sack one "to encourage the others", as the French say.

But before you do, it might be worth checking that these staff have received food hygiene awareness training, as required by law in the EU (I assume you're in the UK or Ireland?).

And cooking snacks for the waiters so they don't steal food off the customers' plates is most definitely NOT the answer: if you're worried about the Environmental Health Officer's inspection, then encouraging staff to stand around the hotplate eating a handful of fries probably isn't the best way to demonstrate your commitment to food hygiene or your personal professionalism.

[Graham Murphy]

There a few things you should think about.
On the staff side, to prevent comebacks on sackings it is best if gross misconduct i.e. sackable issues are made clear in any revised contracts of empolyment eating customers food is theft - note any warnings given.
What about hazard analysis, cleaning,repair,training, temperatures? these are the issues they are likely tro look at. oh yes and read thru' any previous reports and make sure you have actioned anything outstanding.
?
As an eho and like many colleagues a mental judgement involves "would i let my children eat here?" and if its not good enough then something should be done.

[the_seraphim]

well ive let them off a little... just so you guys dont start to wonder... the reason i am a commie (or is it commis... w/e) lol, and yet have to worry about this crap with FOH staff is that im moving from bar manager (with a good amount of influence on the floor) to kitchen... i want to move completely away from bar work for a while...

anyway ive let them a little slack and i only provide a few snacks as their breaks are really far between... sometimes if its busy they understand they may not get a break for 11 hours straight... though i really will try and sometimes have to shout at the one who enjoys cleaning to take their breaks when they can... but the company operates a mystery guest thing, they scored 100% after many tries in the high 80s and mid 90s...

so anyway they know there is a £1000 fund for a staff party if they maintain 100% for a few times so its in their best interest to keep it up... though i have started pushing a few hands up onto the hot lights "accidentaly" to teach them a lesson...

my gosh the boys scream louder than the girls... pussies... but i warned them all they might get burned, ive also used a taller pot to hold the chips in while i finish plating up so they cant reach around the pot and its too hot (as its metal and v close to the hot lights) that they cant move it either so...

oh a funny story... i made one waitress cry... basically, she took a chip off the plate i was about to serve, i had finished the meal.... so i took the plate, pretended to throw it in the bin, really i shunted it onto a spare plate, put the plate up said "take that to the potwasher, then go explain why i have to re-make this meal to the customer and why his food will come out last... AND take the rest of the table its your fault he has to wait"

anyway i followed her out with the meal i moved plates on and set it down, quick joke and chat with the table then took her quickly back into the kitchen

"eat of a customers plate again and next time i wont be pretending! now get OUT of my kitchen and polish cutlery for the rest of the afternoon!" 3 hours and a load of clean cutlery later she apologised and i accepted