The Number One Sign That You're Better Off Leaving A Restaurant

Many of us have our restaurant standbys where we know we'll enjoy well-prepared food, a pleasant atmosphere, and welcoming service. It's also exciting to try new places — but it can be a big letdown when a spot turns out to be a dud, or worse. It turns out, there are a few restaurant red flags that could cause you to turn around and walk out, and one of the worst signs topping the list? It's dirty.

Besides being unpleasant, if a restaurant is slipshod about cleanliness where the customers are, it can be a bad sign about how clean things might be in the kitchen. You don't want to spend the next day sick with food poisoning, so look out for things like dirty tabletops, floors that need to be swept, sticky menus, and spotted or stained silverware or glasses. Also keep an eye out for dirty parking lots, doors, or windows, and signs of unaddressed wear, such as faded or chipped walls that need a new coat of paint, torn carpeting, and even decorative items that are broken or caked with dust.

Take a peek in the bathroom, and if it's dirty or messy, with wet floors or no toilet paper, that's also a bad sign. Pay attention to what your nose tells you too. Noxious odors like old grease, something burning in the kitchen, garbage, or even (shudder) bathroom wafts are a clear message to leave.

Beyond letting cleanliness slide, there are other restaurant red flags that should spur you to find someplace else to eat. Be wary if the place is empty, particularly during usual busy meal times, or if other nearby eateries are hopping. If servers are harried or checked-out — or you have to wait a long time to be greeted, or to receive menus or drinks after you're seated — it could reflect poor management that can carry over into the kitchen. Unless, of course, you're at one of the restaurants that are mean to customers on purpose.

A long menu with many different items, particularly from much different cuisines, can indicate a focus on quantity over quality, which is why sushi and burgers shouldn't be served at the same restaurant. It can also raise questions about the freshness of ingredients since so many items must be kept in stock for dishes that may not be ordered that often. Pictures on the menu can be a bad sign, and if several mistakes have been made with your order, you likely won't feel very confident about the quality of your meal.

An uninviting atmosphere that features blaring music that makes it hard to hear those you're with, a seating design that makes patrons' conversations very loud, or cramped tables that are just elbow-distance apart, can also be a red flag. Finally, a sour note right from the start would be having to wait any longer than 10 minutes when you have a reservation. Almost makes you want to stay home and bake an easy, homemade grandma-style pizza, just to be sure the food is on point.