A woman acquainted with a restaurant owner has disclosed the menu items to steer clear of at all costs, including one notorious for being a ‘breeding ground’ for bacteria.

Originating from the UK, Julia has highlighted the menu items diners should avoid ordering, cautioning that even upscale venues might be offering ingredients prone to bacterial growth.

The social media user, known as @juliabesz.bloommoneying, shared on TikTok after conversing with her friend, who imparted ‘insider’ knowledge about what to bypass, even at his own restaurant.

First on the list was anything from the ‘Specials’ menu that isn’t associated with a seasonal ingredient.

While often sold as a ‘harmless’ – and even exciting – addition to a menu, Julia warned the truth is far less appealing. 

‘Sounds harmless, but in the trade, that often means “stuff we need to shift before it goes off”,’ she said. 

‘The sauce conceals the age, the garnish diverts you – by the time you’ve finished, you’ve essentially paid a premium for leftovers from the previous day,’ she commented.

Additionally, she advised avoiding shellfish sold at restaurants not located near the coast, cautioning that diners might be ‘gambling with their gut’ when it comes to distant seafood.

Next, the restaurateur urged people to watch out for ice in drinks at certain bars, particularly busy ones.

While bustling with eager drinkers at night, the busier bars often are too occupied to properly clean their machines.

‘You’re basically sipping on a chilled petri dish,’ she said. ‘Suddenly, that summer cocktail didn’t feel so Instagrammable.’

Finally, and perhaps least surprising, was chicken. When not cooked properly, chicken is known for being the cause of salmonella poisoning.

But even when cooked, chicken that is left out at buffet or all-you-eat restaurants provides the ‘perfect breeding ground for bacteria’ if placed under heaters and in ‘high volume places’. 

‘They’re not checking every tray like they should. “You won’t see it,” he said, “but you’ll feel it 12 hours later”, she wrote.

Offering a final slice of advice to restaurant goers, she encouraged people to ask themselves just one question – ‘how quickly is this moving off the kitchen pass?’

If food is taking a long time to move from the pass, it’s usually a sure sign to ‘leave it on the menu’. 

‘You’ll save yourself a fortune in wasted meals… and maybe a night hugging the loo,’ she wrote. 

The clip has now been viewed nearly 400,000 times, with commenters divided over the warnings.  

One said: ‘Never order off a specials board it’s simply the food that is going off that day and needs to be binned they dress it up and mark up the price!’ 

A second wrote: ‘Like Anthony Bourdain said never order fish on a Monday, no deliveries in many places that day.’ 

Another added: ‘I worked for a soft drinks company who also serviced ice machines in BIG companies, I never order ice with any drink anywhere.’ 

One particularly impassioned viewer said that there were a few reasons for why dishes on specials menus.

They said: ‘When I was a chef, specials were things the chefs made because they wanted a change from the same boring menu, items we had delivered by mistake (which as substitutions for out of stock items), dishes the chefs begged the head chef to put on the menu and were being tested out before deciding, head chefs giving junior chefs care Blanche to make a special to see how far their skills had come. 

‘I’ve never worked anywhere where it was the old stuff needing shifting.’

However, others were skeptical. ‘Not always. The better restaurants, those that are always full, that have good relationships with suppliers often get good offers and pass that on to their customers,’ a fourth commented.

Another wrote: ‘Delusional. Probably applies to like 5% and yes, I used to be a food safety auditor.’ 

Previously, Marcus Arcabascio, founder of Menu-Price, a website that collates prices and menus of restaurants across the world, revealed what should always be avoided when ordering in a restaurant you’re unfamiliar with.

On his list were popular dishes such as macaroni and cheese and chicken, saying customers should always do their best to seek out fresh items instead. 

‘If you want macaroni and cheese, you are better off making it home,’ he said.

‘Don’t forget that when you order it at a restaurant, you risk toppings like breadcrumbs or vegetables that you might not enjoy with your macaroni and cheese’.

Additionally, customers can consider a house speciality.

Since it is a meal the restaurant is known for, the odds are, it will be a tasty option, Marcus said.

Meanwhile other meals included in his ‘to avoid’ list included scrambled eggs, brownies, steak and sushi.