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I was just remembering a job I did several years ago for a NJ catering company, and the hazards and violations were too many to even count. It was by far the scariest food business I have ever encountered.
I was hired as general kitchen help, as a favor to a fellow chef friend. They didn't know who I was or where I came from. The "chef" of this operation asked me to fill mushroom caps with bearnaise as an accompaniment for the entree. MMmmmm... He told me to mix a few bottles of Sysco lemon juice into Hellman's mayo and add dry tarragon to it. Then he showed me the shrooms, which were already de-stemmed, lined up on pans. They were FILTHY! He told me not to worry about that, and to just fill them. I ended up cleaning them anyway. But after they were filled,he then informed me that he had no room in the walk-in for them, and they sat festering in the 100 degree kitchen for 6 hours before the entree even went out!
Meanwhile, the prep cooks in the next room were cutting up fennel on boards that were previously used for meat. The fennel was also unwashed.
I was asked to carve on the floor, and they gave me a bread knife to slice smoked salmon.
For dessert, they had buckets of mousse,and various berries. The raspberries were covered in mold, and the owner said to use them anyway. Nobody seemed to know what was going on in the kitchen.
I can't help but wonder how many guests got sick that day, and nobody else there seemed to see any problem with what was going on!
I thought that others here might also have some stories to share.
I was hired as general kitchen help, as a favor to a fellow chef friend. They didn't know who I was or where I came from. The "chef" of this operation asked me to fill mushroom caps with bearnaise as an accompaniment for the entree. MMmmmm... He told me to mix a few bottles of Sysco lemon juice into Hellman's mayo and add dry tarragon to it. Then he showed me the shrooms, which were already de-stemmed, lined up on pans. They were FILTHY! He told me not to worry about that, and to just fill them. I ended up cleaning them anyway. But after they were filled,he then informed me that he had no room in the walk-in for them, and they sat festering in the 100 degree kitchen for 6 hours before the entree even went out!
Meanwhile, the prep cooks in the next room were cutting up fennel on boards that were previously used for meat. The fennel was also unwashed.
I was asked to carve on the floor, and they gave me a bread knife to slice smoked salmon.
For dessert, they had buckets of mousse,and various berries. The raspberries were covered in mold, and the owner said to use them anyway. Nobody seemed to know what was going on in the kitchen.
I can't help but wonder how many guests got sick that day, and nobody else there seemed to see any problem with what was going on!
I thought that others here might also have some stories to share.
