From Appetizers To Agony: 30+ Tales Of Horrible Restaurant Experiences

Welcome to the wild world of dining disasters, where gastronomic nightmares and culinary catastrophes shake hands. We’ve all had our fair share of not-so-pleasant restaurant experiences at least once in our lives, but these tales of culinary chaos take the cake—literally and figuratively.

Picture this: you’re eagerly surfing the menu, only to find a not-so-appetizing or even edible extra topping in your pizza. Or how about when someone ordered a “well-done” steak and ended up with something resembling a charcoal briquette on steroids? 

Oh, the atrocities that unfold in the hallowed halls of gastronomy! Grab your popcorn (but don’t expect it to be adequately buttered ), and prepare to feast on tales of epic restaurant fails when people’s patience is tested to the max! Beware! These cringe-worthy tales will make you reconsider your dinner plans tonight!

Multi-purpose sink

This chef witnessed a multi-purpose mop sink! We never knew you could defrost chicken in the same place you clean a mop. Neither did the customers of this restaurant, who came to eat juicy and sizzling chicken pieces. If only they knew what was lurking behind the kitchen doors! 

This scene is straight out of a nightmare. We cannot help but cringe at the thought of chicken juices mingling with mop water. Yikes! And we hope that this establishment was shut down by the health inspectors soon after this image went online. 

“Vegan options”

It looks like this is an innovative vegan fusion creation! We are sure this person ordered this saying, “Let’s give this new vegan dish a whirl!” and thought it was something different, but she wasn’t aware she was about to embark on a wild gastronomic adventure! 

This “vegan” dish is just a mess of some boiled penne pasta with a red apple. Even a 6-year-old can make this thing at home for himself! We are left wondering what price she paid for this pasta-apple fusion dish. 

We’re not lovin’ it

Oh boy, we are definitely not lovin’ this! We feel sorry for this person who had such a hilariously awful experience with McDonald’s! What is this black spider doing on a burger bun? Did it want to take a bite of the Big Mac? 

We cannot decide whether to laugh, cry or cringe at this culinary disaster. Was the restaurant trying to give this person a taste of the wild side with an unexpected eight-legged surprise, or did they start a new “Spider Burger challenge”?

See-through toilet

This restroom situation is downright hilarious! This quirky establishment in Florida has a toilet with transparent doors. Anyone who goes in can be seen clearly from the main road. Yes, you read that right; everyone outside can see you peeing!

Does this restaurant want an all-access pass to the most awkward bathroom encounters? We are all for transparency in the workplace, but this takes it to a new level! Nobody needs to see anybody doing their business.

Mold is the new penicillin

So this girl works in this restaurant; she went to pull the chorizo out of the freezer and saw this bag all moldy and stale. You won’t believe what the owner said! He asked her to pick the good parts because mold is penicillin, and it wouldn’t hurt! 

This owner should close the restaurant forever and work in a tire shop or elsewhere. The girl did the right thing by throwing all this moldy thing away and resigning from this horrible restaurant job. Serving spoiled food puts lives at risk.

Head or wings?

This customer was excited to devour some sizzling BBQ chicken wings, but he stumbled upon this bird head on his plate! This is an exotic treat in other parts of the world, but it wasn’t what this fellow expected. Needless to say, he wasn’t impressed.

This restaurant boasts out-of-the-world flavors, but they have a Fear Factor audition where aspiring contestants must eat a chicken head to get to the next stage. We can’t help but question the chef’s sanity and the staff’s service commitment.

A little too well-done

Is this black filet burger a new fast food item? This person ordered takeout from this local restaurant, ready to sink his teeth into a juicy burger after a long day of work, but it looked like fate had some other plans for him! 

This charcoal filet looks like a culinary crime scene and can be used for a Halloween-themed party. Even if it were edible, nobody would fancy eating such a thing. It doesn’t look appealing, and we’re confident it doesn’t smell pleasant.

Alien insides

Are these worms or larvae or a body of an alien stuffed inside a burger? We are perplexed at this point! And moreover, this restaurant told the customer, “It is perfectly cooked!” This looks like a moving house of worms. 

They must be referring to the perfectly cooked top bun, but forgot to mention the raw patty. This is food poisoning and a lawsuit waiting to happen. The mess looks like a condor sucked into a jet engine! Nothing is good about it.

$25 for a napkin

First of all, installing cameras in the bathroom is a crime. And secondly, who charges for napkins in the restroom area for a whopping $25? Are napkins worth more than burger meals nowadays? We can help but think these people are insane.

This picture was taken at a Vegas restaurant, and no, this is not a joke or a prank; they were serious about the charge. This sign should be enough for people visiting there to never return. This is daylight highway robbery.

What you don’t see can’t hurt

The Ghostbusters movies had less slime than this! This person was servicing the exhaust hoods at a chain restaurant when he saw this scene of a terrible disaster under the fryer. He probably passed out because of the filth. 

This happens when the staff and management need better hygiene practices. The place underneath the coolers will become a practical mold farm in a few days. We wouldn’t be surprised if worms started crawling out. This is a good reason to shut down the establishment.

Raw chicken chunks

This restaurant must give customers a refund for this culinary calamity. They ordered boneless nuggets, and when Door Dash delivered, they were surprised to find the chicken not thoroughly cooked. To be blunt, this is a case of Salmonella waiting to happen.

They should file a complaint with their local health department. What is even crazier than raw chicken? The price tag! Can you believe this uncooked dish was $76? Are customers paying for the risk of getting sick and hospitalized?

Special filling

This person ordered a pizza from a local restaurant in the UK when he found a latex glove inside the crust filling! We need clarification about how this happened. The glove doesn’t resemble cheese, so it couldn’t be mistaken for it.

Did the cook have problems with their sight or was too lazy to dispose of the gloves, so they put them in the dough? This usually happens when workers have a delivery time quota, are lazy, and not paying attention. But at least they were “wearing” gloves, right? 

Disgusting but funny

Is this what you get when you order a glass of ice and guacamole? We can only imagine the look of disbelief on the customer’s face after this was served. Instead of getting two different things, the customer’s food orders were combined.

This is a perfect example of a simple task that should have been foolproof! We could think of a few reasons: the server has a good sense of humor, forgot her coffee in the morning, or her poor soul was too tired. 

Heaven for all but humans

This place is heaven on earth for lions, tigers, leopards, and other stray animals in the neighborhood!. However, it is a special kind of hell for humans! The OP found all this raw meat hanging on the wire behind a Chinese restaurant. 

What if pigeon droppings fall on the meat or flies lay their eggs on it? How was the food establishment allowed to operate under such conditions? More importantly, were any customers sent to the hospital for food poisoning? We need answers.

Extra eggs

This guy found fly eggs in his meal at his local Taco Bell restaurant, and we are shaking our heads at this. We have many questions that we need help figuring out where to begin. Was the meal kept in low moisture? When did the fly lay eggs?

The food must have been kept outside for a long time because the eggs will soon hatch into tiny larvae. We believe in giving people second chances, but that shouldn’t apply to the restaurant business. Not getting it right the first time can result in sickness.

McRoach in McCoffee

This roach, just like the customers, is also enjoying a Mcdonald’s iced coffee on the tropical island of Hawaii! It must badly need caffeine to wake the senses, so it decided to jump right in and help itself to a cup of joe.

We are surprised McDonald’s didn’t charge them extra for this roach! This is an excellent reason to put your money back in your wallet and make a good glass of iced coffee at home rather than buying from outside. This scene will leave us traumatized for life.

Free jewelry inside

Is McDonald’s offering people happy meals with free jewelry? A tongue ring was found in this poor customer’s burger, and what a horrible experience this must have been. Imagine this falling from someone’s mouth and getting onto your food. Yuck!

There you were, hungry and looking forward to a good meal. You were halfway through your burger, and suddenly, you bit something hard, something other than a patty. You get the most unpleasant surprise of your life. This person should do themselves a favor and file a lawsuit.

What happened to the food after?

This proves that some people are not cut out for the food business. What was this staff doing with the food? Losing his job at Subway was not punishment enough. He should be banned from food establishments until the day he dies.

This could all be a ploy for attention. In today’s instant ‘celebrity’ society, some people would do anything to get views and likes, which speaks a lot about the kind of world we live in. Whatever his reasons were, his actions made us sick.

Moldy furball

Thanks to this person who interfered and stopped this moldy ball from reaching a customer’s plate. Is this orange, an apple, or a mutant tomato? To some folks, it is a combination of a kidney stone and a cat’s fur ball. 

We’d like to believe that food establishments train their staff before allowing them to handle food. Lessons about moldy food and safety must be taught during food service training, and something like this should never be allowed near any food.

Just so you know

It was a fine morning, and since you wanted to reward yourself, you made a beeline to the nearest breakfast place to help yourself to some bacon, eggs, hash browns, and a piping hot cup of joe. The food comes, and the first thing you do is reach for the coffee.

You were halfway through your mug’s contents when you noticed how filthy it was. It looks like the cup hasn’t been scrubbed well for decades. This differs from what we had in mind when the words breakfast of champions were mentioned.

McMold

McDonald’s strikes yet again. Their number of entries on this list is enough to earn them the “Filthiest Fast Food Chain” title. Ladies and gentlemen, here is the McPencilin, or McMold, as others call it. Who in their right mind would serve this to a customer?

Are the people in the kitchen blind? How did this nasty thing get past all of them? This isn’t the first time the famous fast-food chain was called out for their behavior and food standards, and we’re confident this wouldn’t be the last.

This was nuts!

This person ordered a Popeye chicken sandwich and got what she ordered. However, it came with a nasty bonus, a big screw that cracked her tooth. And what is that thing on the burger in the second picture? A dead gecko or a skinless amphibian?

Sometimes we have no words to describe the criminality of food establishments. Please, someone, tell us that the customer reported this, and filed a complaint with health inspection authorities. This place should be shut down for eternity.

Simply disgusting

Are those dead cats, raccoons, piglets, or ducks hanging on a pipe outside? Supposedly, this place is one of the top ten Chinese restaurants in Los Angeles. Imagine what you’d find in restaurants not in the top ten. Yikes!

We can only surmise they were drying the meat, but we’re sure there are other better and more hygienic ways of doing so. The staff sitting next to the meat couldn’t even be bothered, as if what they were doing is nothing to be concerned about.

Extra protein icing

A little more protein never hurt anybody, right? It depends on the source of protein. We feel sorry for this person’s friend who was about to help himself with icing from Burger King but found something that wasn’t supposed to be there.

Some folks point out that it isn’t the fast-food chain’s fault because this was a sealed product, and the manufacturer should be blamed. We disagree with that. Burger King should be accountable for hiring manufacturers with no safety standards.

Gift inside!

We have come up with various scenarios that led to this tape getting inside the fries packet, but none seems plausible. Workers can’t work in the factory with their eyes closed. How will you do your tasks if you can’t see where you’re going?

Were they sealing the freshness by putting the tape roll in the bag? Did someone mistake it for an onion ring? We hope they chucked this bag straight into the trash for their customers’ sake. We wouldn’t want anyone eating that!

Collective punishment time

This is collective punishment time for all restaurants that refuse to properly dispose of their grease. We hope the health authorities have written to each of them with a hygiene improvement notice and how they would be prosecuted. 

Restaurants that don’t follow regulations shouldn’t be allowed to continue operating. They should be shut down for good if they cannot keep their premises clean. How can you expect them to serve clean food when their immediate surroundings look like a dump?

Back to the diet

This is another Salmonella case waiting to happen. It’s okay to eat beef medium rare. However, you can’t do the same with chicken. Poultry should be cooked thoroughly to make it safe for consumption. This chicken looks like it will return to life anytime soon!

How can they brown the outside that much without cooking anything inside? The meat was likely too cold or frozen when thrown in the fryer. Folks, let this be a lesson to defrost meat before cooking. Don’t be lazy!

Secret ketchup ingredient

This person is morally obligated to report the restaurant because this is disgusting and unsafe. It’s one thing to use expired products, but entirely another to use products with molds. Items like these should be disposed of right away.

This sriracha sauce must have been past its use-by date for a long time, hence the mold growth. Things like these make us paranoid about food establishments because we don’t know what’s happening behind the scenes. We’re concerned about cleanliness.

This is food, not trash

Have you ever seen a restaurant that keeps its food in trash cans? This nauseating scene was from a Chinese restaurant. They were storing food in trash cans and putting it in a dirty hallway. To add insult to injury, their employees smoke in this area too. 

How many people have gotten sick by eating at this awful restaurant? You are sitting comfortably inside, eating your Peking roast duck, wonton soup, and chow mien with gusto, not knowing that this goes on at the back. Appearances can be deceiving.

Signature pizza

Is this a signature pizza dish with fungus toppings? We’re not up to date with the food scene, but we’re confident something atrocious has yet to be invented. Would you like your pizza with a thin crust and extra mold topping? No? Neither do we.

They must have baked the pizza last year and only remembered to deliver it now. Yes, we know people say better late than never. However, that doesn’t apply to food. How do you think your customer would react if they were given this?

This was nuts #2

It seems like the chefs at Papas Greek Truck cook food with hammers, nails, screws, wrenches, and pliers. That’s the only explanation we can think of for this person’s hidden prize. Are her teeth and jaw doing fine after this catastrophe?

We are unsure whether to laugh or cry at this. Were the staff telling customers, “Screw you” with the help of their burgers? This is unforgivable, and the poor customer should be duly compensated. Either this establishment shapes up or shuts down.

Attempted murder!

Someone, please call 911 because this is a crime! This is a clear case of attempted murder because the customer was enjoying her food and was shocked when she chanced upon a big piece of glass in her meal. We can’t imagine what could have happened if she bit into it.

If you’ve seen the horror movie, Mirrors, you’d understand how things can escalate quickly. This Taco Bell restaurant should be held accountable for its actions and punished severely for putting a customer’s life in grave danger. There’s no excuse for this!

False advertising

If something similar happened to us, we would have sent this meal back and told them to take it off our bill. Food establishments go overboard with their photos, but this is downright fraudulent. This is the height of false advertising.

The meal in the second picture looked like a toddler haphazardly scattered the food on the board and said, “Well, here’s your meal. Enjoy!” They didn’t even bother to unwrap the Babybel. We’d like to know how much they paid for this disaster.

Better hold it in

This made us burst into a maniacal laugh! Are the customers supposed to pay before peeing? Or should they pee first and pay after? Most importantly, why must you charge your patrons when they use your toilet? It doesn’t make sense.

We don’t know which part of the world this KFC is in, but we’re not going there. Customers shouldn’t be made to pay to use the toilet when they already paid for their food. We’ll keep our pennies and eat elsewhere.

Deconstructed Caprese salad

This customer supposedly ordered a Caprese salad but got this sorry excuse for food instead. We can’t see the salad anywhere in the photo, can you? We might need to contact Dora the Explorer to help us find it.

Please, no one, we repeat, no one sends this photo to any Italian family member or friend, or they will get the shock of their lives. They might pass out, have a stroke, or curse until the cows come home.

Just nasty

Hygiene has left the chat! This is nasty and horrible; how can someone even work in a place like this? The ice-making machine looks like it has been a while since anyone has cleaned it. So, this is the reason for the beverages’ funky taste.

Sadly, this is the most common hygiene failure in most restaurants worldwide. This is a convincing enough reason not to ask for ice in restaurants. Usually, we brush away such statements, but now we’re believers. We’ll get our beverages from the can.

The second seat

We’d like to believe this is a prank because how else can you explain the presence of a toilet bowl in the dining area? This was spotted in Paris. Was the restaurant preparing for the unlikely event of a terrible case of diarrhea?

Did they think there might not be enough time for the customer to run to the bathroom, so they made the bathroom go to the customer instead? Or did they run out of comfortable chairs, and decided to use the toilet?

Defrost or waste bucket?

No one should eat at this restaurant; it should be shut down forever, along with a heavy fine. We are confused and appalled at the cleaning standards of this place. What made them think they could feed such a thing to humans?

Anybody who uses a filthy waste basket for defrosting meat should be locked up forever, and the key should be thrown away. What is that dirty, crusty piece of machinery that looks like it has never been scrubbed since it was made?

Nicely handled?

This person ordered some food through Door Dash and got something extra in his meal, a handle. What is a massive metal handle doing in the food? Most importantly, how did it get there? Is this Door Dash’s fault or the food establishment’s?

After seeing this post, we are surprised they didn’t charge extra for this metal handle, as it looks perfectly seasoned. Unlike bugs, this thing is enormous and easily noticeable, so something tells us this was deliberate. Did they have a score to settle with the delivery guy?

Window seat with a view

The termites said, “Get away, humans; this is our place to party!” We want to cancel the order and leave this filthy place. Something tells us this restaurant wouldn’t be standing for too long because the creepy-crawlies have invaded it.

The staff couldn’t even be bothered to clean up before opening their doors and welcoming customers. Just imagine their attitude towards handling food. You’re better off making a 180-degree turn and going elsewhere for a nice meal. Avoid this place at all costs.

Extra “less” cheese

If this person paid extra for cheese in his meal, he should get it. The question is, where is it? Because we don’t see anything extra here. Is that even the regular amount of cheese? Whatever this thing is, it looks completely unappetizing and gross.

This person should get his money back. If the manager had any sense, they should apologize and give him free burgers for at least a year. Places like this should be taught a lesson. Take your business to a place where it’s appreciated.

Italian cheese and tomato salad

Is this thing called a salad, or was a toddler put in charge of arranging random tomato and cheese slices? We’re unsure what the customer ordered, but something tells us it wasn’t this. It’s safe to say there was disappointment at the table.

When in Rome, do as the Romans did. The same thing goes when you’re in Egypt. Take the occasion as a chance to indulge in excellent and delicious Egyptian food made by local chefs. It’s the perfect time to tickle your taste buds with the best the country offers.

Edible cardboard

Is cardboard a new ingredient in Taco Bell restaurants? Was there any press release for it? Because we didn’t notice any. It boggles the mind how the staff can miss such a thing. Perhaps the staff has been working all week and needs rest.

We’re confident Taco Bell has yet to sell edible cardboard, so this mistake could be a problem with the staff. It could be a case of overworked personnel or people who don’t love their jobs and only go to work because of the money.

Where are the pancakes?

We cannot believe this blunder from one of the biggest and most expensive food chains, IHOP. Serving pancake batter to customers who expect to bite into a fully-cooked breakfast delight? Sometimes, these expensive places are not worth the money anymore.

We could have easily mistaken this for chocolate ice cream if the OP didn’t mention that it was supposed to be a pancake. The quality of IHOP products and services has dropped so much. This is sad and disappointing.

Lentil glob

Is this a soup or frozen lentil ice cream? Calling it a soup would be a shame! It looks like someone dumped a giant can of Alpo in the pan. Even if they heat this thing, it won’t look any more pleasant or edible.

Would you fancy eating this glob? This should go straight to the trash because it looks like it will give people a nasty indigestion or diarrhea. Someone, please someone mention the name of this place, so people can avoid it.