How many places in your area can you eat at on duty...

[Badgerland]

...without worrying about goobers in your food? In my area, we have about 25 fast food places. I can safely say that I feel comfortable eating at 3 of them: a Subway, an Arby's, and a Wendy's.

I used to think that the drive-thru was safe, but every time I would go to the Burger King, the clerk would see it was a squad at the window, and then walk back to where they were making my food. I quickly stopped going there.

I used to be able to eat at one of the local McDonald's. About 6 months ago, 2 of our officers went there to pick up an employee on a probation hold. They arrive and tell the guy that he is under arrest. He then asks if he give the McDonald's folks their jacket back. As soon as he takes off the jacket, he tries running. The 2 officers end up with a wrestling match with this guy in the middle of the restuarant, and they finally get him in custody. After he is in cuffs, the manager asks when he will be out, because he has to work in the morning. This was after he was wrestling with police in the middle of the restaurant in uniform.

I thought my coworkers were joking when they were telling that story until about a month ago when I go to the drive-thru at McDonald's. Who is working the drive-thru, but that same scroatbag. AND THEY MADE HIM ASSISTANT MANAGER. I ordered an eggnog milkshake (mmmmmmmmmm eggnog) at the first window and he took the money. I pull up to the second window, and here comes Mr. Scroatbag with my shake, stirring it with a spoon with a [email protected] grin on his face. It is safe to say that the shake went undrinken.

[Sig220Man]

I've learned over the years that the only food you can trust is the kind you (or your significant other) purchase at the supermarket and prepare at home.

Wendy's? I once (off-duty) stopped at a Wendy's in the SF Valley. As soon as I got to the register the cashier happened to turn around so I can get a lovely view of "S-O-L-E-D-A-D" tattooed on the back of the guy's neck. (For the non-CA folks, Soledad is one of the state's major prisons, in Monterey County). I then "remembered" I left my wallet in the car and left via the nearest exit, never to return.

I don't think the other chains are necessarily any better; when you're only paying minimum wage, you can't be picky. The only exception is In n Out Burger, because of their salaries (probably the best in the fast food industry) and benefits they can afford to be choosy when it comes to hiring. Plus, the griddle and food prep areas are in full view of the public (both walk up and drive through).

I've heard Subway being touted here before (since you can watch them prepare the food), but frankly their food sucks.

In my city, probably the safest places to eat are a few "greasy spoons" which have long been cop hangouts. Plus they give a "corporate discount" to us. Not that it's supposed to matter

If I have to eat at a national fast food chain, if possible I avoid the drive-thru line for two reasons:

1. If you get an emergency call, with the exception of a few places you are stuck. Of course you will get that "Handle Code 3" call just when you are in the exact middle of a long line of cars

2. Many now have CCTV cameras (so they know if there's a customer waiting), and if they see you in a marked unit they'll have time to tamper with the food if they so desire.

[156]

I rarely, if ever eat at a fastfood restaurant for the reasons listed above, and also because the food is filled with fat and cholesterol and they never ever get the order right. How hard is it to make a hamburger anyway?

[207]

I try to avoid fast food chains because they tend to make me feel ill without someone tampering with the food.
I'll usually stop at one of three Chinese food places and get a pint of one of the fried rices and an egg roll. There are also 2 Subways I'll stop at from time to time. All make their items in plain view.

[Chaplain Keppy]

Too bad there's not a way to make this more public... it's so offensive that there are a lot of non-LEOs (as well as LEOs) who would stop patronizing a place if they knew that kind of behavior was not punished by management. Maybe a few well-placed letters to the editor of the local paper where these things happened...

[Mitzi1]

How awful this happens to cops! It also happens to demanding customers. We have a neighbor that is SO arrogant, we quit going out to eat with them. He referred to waiters and waitresses as "gofers". His main goal, when eating out, it to demand more service and try to get more food then they offer. He constantly tried substituting and constantly tried to avoid paying for his 10 year old daughter. It was such an ordeal to go out with them.
We went to a really nice restaurant one time and the hot sauce wasn't hot enough for him. He called over the manager and told him to have one of his "gofers" run across the street to get the hot sauce at another restaurant. The indignant manager refused. This guy was SO demanding that we had finished eating by the time his food was served, after being sent back with complaints numerous times.He would order two glasses of tea and tell the "gofer", "When one is empty, the other better be filled. Your tip counts on it".
I looked over when she bought our drinks and saw several of them standing by the wall, smiling and watching him. That's when I decided to drink just my water. And the funny thing is that his wife mentioned thay had been eating at home more because he just seemed to not be able to tolerate restaurant food anymore. He got sick several times after eating out. I don't even want to know how that is managed.

[kirch]

I've got a few in my area that I patronize. All are set up so that I can watch them make my food:

- Qdoba
- Subway (though not often; I don't care for their food that much)
- Big Mike's
- Atlanta Bread Co.
- Noodles & Co. (State St location; it's the only one where I can see them preparing the food)

I also have started phoning in food orders when I want to eat at a place where I can't see the food being prepared. If they tell me it'll be ready in 10 minutes, I usually pick it up in 15 so the food is already done when I show up. Then they can't do anything to it before they realize who (or what) I am.

[Neinta]

I was eating at Quiznos one time and the person in line in front of me was a sheriff deputy. Anyway, he was ordering sandwhiches for a bunch of other deputies who were already sitting at a table (4 total). It was the day after my sister and I watched "Super Troopers." Anyway, my sister tries to be funny and after he orders she says "Yeah, it's for a cop." Oh man was he ****ed. We all ate without incident but when my sister and I went out to the car, we were followed by two of them. They come up to my car and go "you two think you are just so funny don't you." "Uh no sir, we are not funny." They said something to the effect of "well I'm sure if we searched your car we could find a violation." I gave them the go ahead, the only thing I have in my car is jumper cables in the trunk, the paperwork for my car and a few napkins in the glovebox and the plastic case for my stereo faceplate. What really thew them off was the stack of police applications and notes to "Call Sgt. XXXXX" or "Call Chief YYYYY" sitting on my back seat. They left real quick when they saw I had the cell number for their dear sheriff.

Subway is a safe one here, most of the cops eat there. Something about being on diets? A few are daring and eat fast food drive throughs but most will not.

[KenM]

In uniform I only eat where I can watch the food being prepared. Luckily, where I live/work there's a lot of places like that. Most of it is home-cooking.

Chain restaurants suck. I refuse to eat at McDonalds, Taco Bell or anything resembling them.

[FutureEnforcement]

I'm a strickly no fast food diet except Subway cause when I eat fast food, it fastly goes somewhere .

[jeeper]

Kirch is one of the luckiest coppers in our county, being able to have the ABC in his patrol area. There is only about 2 places where we can order out to downtown. Occaisonally, a supervisor will approve someone to take a conveyance car out to one of the places that doesn't deliver to get us some grub, but very rarely. From "past professional contacts" I avoid nearly every fastfood place, unless I'm going drive thru and in my POV. If its fastfood and I'm going in, I MUST watch it be prepared. Usually Panera is Ok for uniform eating as well as ABC or Subway.

Badgerland, what were you thinking going to the BK on the drive in your city?!?! I can think of dozens of huber inmates who are/have worked there. All BK's scare me, unless a town of less than 5k population.

[Mickey Knox]

quote:

---

Originally posted by kirch:
I've got a few in my area that I patronize. All are set up so that I can watch them make my food:

- Qdoba
- Subway (though not often; I don't care for their food that much)
- Big Mike's
- Atlanta Bread Co.
- Noodles & Co. (State St location; it's the only one where I can see them preparing the food)

---

Milwaukee eh?

Im not a cop yet, but..

I like noodles and company, subway and Qdoba. If your ever in the neighborhood stop at Pizza Shuttle on farwell. I know all the cooks and they wouldn't have the opportunity (or desire) to do anything to your food. Plus LEO's get half off for dine in or pick up orders. (i work there, )

[ 03-12-2003, 05:05 AM: Message edited by: Mickey Knox ]

[kirch]

Mickey:

Close, but not quite. It does start with an 'M' though.

jeeper:

yeah, I really like Atlanta Bread Co. But I was very disappointed the other day when I ordered my usual chicken salad sandwich and they had changed the recipe.

[cubasqueen]

What are "greasy spoons"?

[Mitzi1]

Diners that are not equipped with chefs and don't worry about cholesterol!