Unfortunately for the sinks and plugholes of Great Britain, we have a habit of washing down the odd thing that we probably shouldn’t, and sometimes with disastrous results.

For most of us, the thought of binning the little bits of left over food on our plates is usually an afterthought, we simply washing it down the plughole and hope for the best.

Well that’s really what we should be doing at all, but we’ve found a list of the worst foods you can possibly attempt to wash away.

Even if you have a grease-trap, macerator or waste disposal unit within your sink system, it’s still important to avoid putting any of the following foods or food pieces down into your sink system:

1. Pasta, rice and potato peels

Starchy foods such as pasta, potato peels and rice turn into a thick goo within you pipework.

This can slowly build up over time and create big blocking masses, that in turn catch other food items and turns into a much larger problem.

To dispose: Simply use a sieve or colander during preparation and dispose before you’ve even cooked the food, a sink strainer will provide the same protection, but if there are noticeable chunks, just collect them with a piece of kitchen towel.

2. Fats, oils and grease

The worst offender in almost all kitchens and sink systems around the world, the problem with oils and grease are that they are liquid whilst hot, or remain in liquid form. Then once cooled, these oils, fats and grease will quickly solidify. Essentially sealing your pipework, and creating mass blockages.

If the grease makes it’s way into the wider sewerage system, then it will just solidify there, which can form huge ‘fatbergs’.

These ginormous masses of fat damage pipes and absorb more and more dirt, grease and beyond within the sewerage system, growing into behemoths that could cause major problems.

In 2013, Thames Water discovered a 10-tonne ‘fatberg’, which consisted of wet wipes and fat in a West London sewer. It cost the company an approximate £400,000 to repair the damage caused by this avoidable problem.

To dispose: Simply collect in a jar or cup and then dispose of when solidified into your bin or bin bag.

3. Coffee grounds and eggshell shards

The problem with coffee grounds and eggshell shards is that they tends not to break down further, simply collecting within pipework and becoming a mass, or attaching to the grease and fat lining any pipes.

To dispose: Put eggshells straight into the bin, with coffee grounds when rinsing a cafetiere or coffee cup out, do so above a sieve. Preventing particles from entering the water system.

4. Seeds and grains

Whilst seeds tend to be what end up thrown away during preparation, sometimes they are part of a meal, the problem here is that small seeds tend to be hard to grind up.

They bounce around our water disposal systems, and cause havoc much like coffee grounds and eggshell shards.

The same principle applies to fruit and vegetable pulp, it just stays in the drainage system and latches onto other items that pass through.

To dispose: When cutting up fruit and vegetables, gather any seeds and pulp in a paper towel and simply place in the bin. Or after serving then scrape into the bin before washing any plates.

5. Stringy foods

Foods that can go stringy, mainly plant based, can become stringy when sliced. Foods like celery, leeks and asparagus are to be avoided, as they can stop waste disposal motors and also create blockages.

To dipose: Chop into small pieces before putting into a waste disposal unit, or throw in the bin whole.

That should just about wrap it up, but if you haven’t already invested in a proper waste disposal system, grease trap or even just a new set of bins and containers, then be sure to take a look at our entire cleaning hardware range.

We might be able to help unblock your sink, but we can help you prevent a blockage from occurring in the first place.

The post Foods you need to avoid putting down the sink appeared first on CS Catering Equipment's Blog.

Restaurants are losing out on income and vital addition revenue through a combination of meagre customer service and abject cleaning practices, a survey by the PR group Censuswide has found.

Those questioned stated that a bad customer service experience was their biggest turn off, though it would not necessarily stop them from returning to the establishment.

More worryingly however for caterers was that over half of the participants stated that unwashed glassware would force people to think twice about revisiting whilst dirty cutlery would put people off altogether…these are the ‘Top 5 Restaurant Turn Offs’…

If there is one thing that this list of things proves, it’s that even the little details can ruin the dining experience. Let this serve as a warning for all caterers, restauranters, cafe owners and the remainder of the service industry that the customer is always watching! Always!

Poor service

Personal conversations, rude staff, improper conduct and a lack of personal hygiene can all fall into this category.

Waiting staff should be smartly dressed, courteous, able to build up a rapport with customers without verging on being overbearing, calm and communicative.

Whilst we can’t help with staff attitude or day-to-day working, we can provide some superb smart uniforms so at least they look effortlessly classy.

Unclean bathrooms

Nobody likes to clean the bathroom, but it’s a necessary evil that we all have to do whether at home or in a professional environment.

The food may be pristine, staff and chefs may not have a hair out of place and the floors may be immaculate, but grimy bathroom facilities can get people flocking out of the door.

Keeping your toilet and bathrooms clean is easy with our cleaning hardware, chemicals, hand towels and dispensers. Now you have no excuses for not having gleaming loos!

Dirty cutlery or crockery

Nine out of ten respondents stated that clean crockery and cutlery was important to them when judging restaurants, with it being serious enough to be categorised as a ‘top turn off’ by nearly two-thirds of people.

There’s no harm in washing plates, knives and forks twice if needs be, especially if you’re as well stocked as you should be!

It makes sense to have a thorough cutlery and crockery cleaning routine, but as your cutlery and crockery gets used and abused, it may need a refresh or updating.

Stainless steel doesn’t stay stainless forever, and so we offer quality long-lasting cutlery, storage and more to choose from if you are due a complete equipment refresh.

Stained tablecloths

White fabrics can be an absolute nightmare to clean, just ask any parent or your fellow restaurateurs, but clean they must be.

There is simply no excuse for serving food off a table with a filthy tablecloth, we understand that a white tablecloth is a magnet for dirt and grime.

It’s therefore so important to have plenty of spares to change if the dirt gets noticeable. Our range of tablecloths are designed to last, with stylish designs and at superb prices! Save the embarrassment of a filthy cloth with our quality table linen.

Dirty glassware

  photo: Garry Knight – Used under creative commons

Whether this is a big area or not could depend on your gender.

According to Censuswide’s results women are more likely to complain about the state of glassware than men are: less than half of the males polled said it was a serious issue compared to nearly 60% of females.

Ensuring that you have a clean serving space and that all of your plates, bowls, cutlery, napkins and more are gleaming and fresh.

We even stock polycarbonate crockery, cultery and glassware that is almost indistinguishable from real glass, but is much more durable and scratch resistant. If you prefer the real deal, then we can also provide all manner of quality glassware options in all shapes and sizes.

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“The customer is always right,” is a phrase we hear all too often. Whilst we agree that exceptional customer service is integral to ours, yours and any else’s business, there are times – especially in the catering and service industry – where the customer can overstep the mark into rudeness.

We’ve decided to highlight some of the worst customer actions that really grind our gears, even if we put on a brave face and smile through the internal anger.

If you work in the service industry, then you’ll have experienced at the very least one of these customers!

If you work in a kitchen, have worked in a restaurant, takeaway, cafe or coffee shop, then customers who do any of the following are likely to be ingrained into your memory.

1. Acting like a VIP

Giving customers VIP treatment is a must, but it’s not always nice when customers come into your business and act like a VIP.

Essentially expecting ridiculous requests to be met, be that asking for tables that are already filled, asking for water at a specific temperature.

A please and thank you would also be nice.

2. Turn up unexpected without a booking

Unlike the VIP, turning up and expecting or demanding a table on a busy Saturday night is just infuriating. If we can squeeze you or fit you in, then it might not be a problem.

But to turn up and genuinely expecting to be given a table despite the fact that our establishment is often fully booked on a weekend.

How hard is it to call in advance? Heck, we even have website booking in most cases now! Use it.

3. Clicking fingers

This is probably one of the single rudest things that a customer can do. If you’ve been on the receiving end of a ‘clicking’ then you’ll know exactly what it feels like!

Getting attention in a busy restaurant, cafe or other is difficult, we understand that. But throwing your hand into the air and clicking is not the ‘right way’ to go about getting staff to notice you!

A simple wave is more than enough, but don’t tap a member of staff, that’s a no-no too.

So stop snapping your fingers before we get the urge to snap them off…

4. Awkward recipe adjustments

Yes we can cater for the fact that you want extra bacon in your burger, but it’s not this that we’re talking about.

Our menu has likely been developed over time to not only give you the best dining experience, but also for costing purposes. We have set prices for a reason!

If you come in and feel like changing our entire menu to suit you, then it’s probably best that you cook for yourself! Save everyone the hassle!

5. Stacking plates

Whilst this is probably a minor gripe, stacking plates doesn’t necessarily help anyone. Not only are staff less likely to be able to carry an entire plate pyramid, but separating the plates into ‘mini piles’ takes time and gets messy.

It’s easier to just pass your plates to the waiting staff across the table, much better.

And whilst we have you here, please don’t put napkins on plates on in cups, we understand that you are trying to help, but it slows the whole process down.

6. Unruly children

You might think that your children are cute or ‘just being kids’, but running amok around our dining area directly affects not only us as caterers, but our other customers.

We understand that children can be impatient, get upset easily or get cranky from time-to-time, so we can provide distractions or solutions to help keep them occupied.

But we are not babysitters, please don’t just tune your children out if they shriek and whine either. It’s not exactly fair on everyone else.

7. Not putting away your mobile phone

Firstly, although this could mean those customers who are so ignorant they don’t even look up from their smartphone screen to place and order, or speak on the phone whilst conversing intermittently with serving staff.

We also mean those who put their incredibly expensive devices on the table in plain sight right where a small spillage or droppage could end up being catastrophic.

Please put your phone in your pocket whilst at the table, or at the very least put it on the table after we’ve served you.

8. Not remembering what you ordered

We’ve taken your order, we’ve prepared everything to perfection, and now you’ve forgotten what you and fellow diners have ordered. Great.

Most of the time, this isn’t a problem as our staff will know what you ordered better than you do. But, if you are in a large group, it’s likely that we’ll have other serving staff help get the dishes out as quick as possible, we don’t want to be stood there asking who ordered what any more than you do waiting.

So please try and remember what you’ve ordered.

9. Bill splitting penny counters

Splitting the bill isn’t an issue for the most part, we don’t expect as business owners that a table of 10-15 people won’t want to split the cost of their food.

It’s the penny pinchers and counters that really grind our gears.

Split the bill evenly or request a separate bill if necessary. At the end of the day, even if your meal cost £3 less than the average, you’ll have contributed to the tip and it is likely to even out the over the times you do dine again.

10 . Trip Advisor terrorisers

This is becoming more and more common as the platform has become synonymous with pre-research on your favourite eateries.

Trying to dine out on the cheap is something that people are starting to really abuse. The scenario tends to play-out something like this. Table orders an expensive dish, drinks and then your waiting staff get told that these ‘diners’ are doing a TripAdvisor review and want a free meal.

Once told no, they start picking fault or inventing faults with their food and service, before leaving an awful review on the site. Completely falsely.

TripAdvisor couldn’t care less about taking down the malicious review, and so this extortion racket continues by a group of people that are falsely claiming to be the ‘voice of the people’.

We wonder what the worst kind of customers you might have experienced during your time?…

The post 10 annoying things customers do appeared first on CS Catering Equipment's Blog.

We Brits love our food, and it comes as no surprise that we are big fans of reading and researching our favourite dishes on the internet.

Learning about new recipes is one thing, but with regional and national favourites many of us have our own distinct method or variation, which is leading to more and more experimentation with the ‘classics’.

The study was conducted by Google for Business Insider, with the food searches throwing up some very very familiar dishes…

9 – Beef stew

A photo posted by @donnybrook_fair on Jun 26, 2016 at 1:35pm PDT

One of the ultimate winter warmers the beef stew has seen online searches increase by over 350% since January 2010.

The rise in searches for beef stew could be down to the resurgence in the slow cooker and slow cooking recipes.

We can’t really blame people searching for this excellent and filling dish.

8 – Flat iron steak

A photo posted by Flat Iron (@flatironsteak) on Mar 29, 2016 at 9:12am PDT

Th flat iron steak is a specialist cut from the shoulder of the animal. This cut produces a steak that although a bit tougher than other cuts, is incredibly flavoursome.

In some steakhouses and restaurants it’s sold as a slightly cheaper alternate to rib-eye and strip steaks that are of the same grade.

Famous for the increased marbling, the flat iron steak is an exceptional piece of meat.

As with all steak cuts, the rarer served, the better.

7 – Sweet potato fries

A photo posted by Alyssa (@anotherlovely_) on Jun 27, 2016 at 7:05am PDT

A healthier alternative to traditional chips, sweet potato fries are one of the food trends of the past few years.

According to Google the colourful chips have had 12 times the amount of search traffic since January 2010.

We can’t really blame people as we prefer sweet potato fries to the traditional version, lighter and just that little bit sweeter, we would have them with every meal if we could!

6 – Soft boiled egg

A photo posted by Tazza Kitchen (@tazzakitchen) on Jun 22, 2016 at 6:30pm PDT

Much harder to achieve than a hard boiled egg, the soft boiled egg is all about timing.

This probably explains why searches for the food have grown in recent years, with cooks looking to find the perfect method of making the runny egg.

The perfect addition to a summer salad or a health conscious breakfast, proving just how versatile eggs can be, as well as filling.

Plus they look awesome.

5 – Yorkshire pudding

A photo posted by @iamdamien on Apr 11, 2015 at 6:50am PDT

As everyone knows, the best part of a traditional roast dinner is the Yorkshire pudding. We do it properly here in the county, and so we don’t blame folk not from Yorkshire searching for the perfect recipe or method to cook them.

Just make sure that you fill your Yorkshire pudding with gravy, otherwise you’re doing it wrong.

4 – Sea bass

A photo posted by Sonia Lee (@thesonilee) on Jun 25, 2016 at 12:35am PDT

This might come a little bit of a surprise to many, as sea bass is the most popular fish per Google searches in the United Kingdom.

We don’t recommend getting seabass fried, but when grilled, it is an exceptional fish dish.

Light and flavoursome.

3 – Greek salad

A photo posted by Ariel, Hannah, and Stefani (@healthy_homies) on Jun 26, 2016 at 10:19am PDT

The searches for Greek salad seem to correspond to that of the seasons, and unsurprisingly the hot weather.

As a much more health conscious nation, we are looking to reduce the amount of sugar and fat in our diets, the Greek salad is the perfect healthy meal option that is not only filling but has flavours unlike any other salad.

Leafy greens, refreshing tomatoes, sweet and sour crumbled feta, add a dash of olive oil and this is the perfect light healthy lunch.

2 – Fish and chips

If you were to ask any non-British person what our national dish were, you would 99 times out of 100 hear them reply “fish and chips.”

And with good reason, fish and chips are the staple for many Brit of a Friday evening, where the tradition of fish and chips still continues.

The health conscious crowd have seen searches surge as we the consumer wants an alternate to the newspaper clad cod, and instead look for healthier tasting sea based treats.

In fact why don’t we combine sea bass and sweet potato fries?…

1 – Apple Crumble

A photo posted by Annemette Voss (@annemettevoss) on Jun 23, 2016 at 6:03am PDT

The number one food that we the British public have been searching for online since January 2015 might come as somewhat of a surprise.

A very traditional British dessert, the Apple Crumble is probably helped by the popularity of TV shows such as the Great British Bake Off, which pits budding bakers against each other over the course of the late summer and early autumn.

Best served warm with custard, we are huge fans of a bit of cinnamon being added to give a contrasting flavour to that of the sweet apples.

The post 9 foods Brits love according to Google appeared first on CS Catering Equipment's Blog.