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Restaurants nationwide have self-serve soda machines, but customers should be wary the next time they want to get a drink.
Brynn Flanahan (@brynnnniethepooh) posted a video showing that water she got from an Wendy’s, which sat in her car for a week, had spore-like objects at the bottom.
“Can someone on science TikTok tell me what this is,” she said.
TikToker and former construction worker @just_be_sovereign stitched her video and shared an experience with a soda machine that changed his outlook on them.
“About seven years ago, I was working for a construction company and we were remodeling a restaurant/bar,” he said. “All of the plastic tubing they use to spray out your fountain drinks, …each one of them was filled with mold like you’ve never seen.”
Several people in the comments who worked at restaurants explained the processes for cleaning out these machines and any possible mistakes that could happen.
“Every restaurant I’ve worked at we’ve had to remove them at night and soak them in sanitizer. Morning shift put them back on,” commented @noelllllllllllllllllll_.
“After working in multiple restaurants, never trust the soda nozzles to be clean… or the cups… or dishes…,” replied @sapphic.spaghetti.
Apparently, it’s not just the soda machines that need examining.
“You don’t want to know what it looks like inside of a restaurant ice machine,” replied @wiloughbysrecoverystory.
Katie Heil, a food and beverage content manager for Certus, told Delish.com how a machine ends up dirty.
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“At understaffed restaurants, tasks like cleaning soda fountains are less likely to be completed than tasks that contribute to the visible cleanliness of the facility,” she told Delish.com.
Flanahan’s and @just_be_sovereign’s reactions to the soda machine were consistent with many of their viewers. The cleaning of soda machines is just one restaurant secret that has surprised TikTokers.
TikTokers were also stunned when they discovered the secret behind sizzling plates, which involved squirting a clear liquid known by industry insiders as “sizzle sauce” on the plate that created the effect of steam coming from the dish.
As in-app editing tools on TikTok make BTS (behind the scenes) video more straightforward to produce than ever, users will likely learn even more restaurant secrets – for better or worse.
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