Is Unchilled Mayonaisse at Fast Food Outlets Safe?

scottishdave on 22/03/2025 - 17:26
Last edited 22/03/2025 - 17:39 by 1 other user

I was in one of the major fast food places at lunchtime with my family and noticed that all the squeeze bottles including mayonnaise were just sitting on the counter as the kitchen staff dispensed them onto the food.

I thought mayonnaise, with eggs being one of major ingredients, should not be stored room temperature on the workbench. Does it pose a food poisoning danger to my kids if the mayonnaise has been sitting on the benchtop for many hours at room temperature (or warmer as in the kitchen)?

Food & Grocery Condiments Mayonnaise

Comments

  • SBOB on 22/03/2025 - 17:37
    +1

    I would think the mayonnaise is the least of the worries when it comes to items at a 'major' fast food place.

    sitting on the benchtop for many hours at room temperature

    Ever noticed the mayonnaise at your local supermarket isn't kept in the fridge section?

    • Ocker on 22/03/2025 - 17:53
      +9

      When kept on the shelving the container is sealed.
      BUT, the label does state to refrigerate after opening.

      • SBOB on 22/03/2025 - 18:22
        +7

        At the rate of usage a fast food restaurant goes through their condiments, the reason for those labels becomes invalid.

        • Ocker on 22/03/2025 - 18:34
          +3

          MY post was in response to your misleading comment "Ever noticed the mayonnaise at your local supermarket isn't kept in the fridge section"

      • Dr Phil on 23/03/2025 - 14:12
        -1

        Only for storage purposes after opening

        Same as with cheese

  • Gdsamp on 22/03/2025 - 17:39
    +16

    bold assumption that fast food mayonnaise contains such luxuries as eggs….

  • Slinky0111 on 22/03/2025 - 17:42

    Here we go again, fridge vs pantry debate.

  • Gdsamp on 22/03/2025 - 17:47
    +3

    Don’t waste energy stressing over things you can’t control—it only drains you and changes nothing. Focus instead on your actions, choices, and mindset, because that’s where your real power lies. Let go of the rest; it's not your responsibility to carry the weight of the world.

    • djones145 on 23/03/2025 - 13:40

      true worry about

      drop bears aaaahhhhh

  • simplystu on 22/03/2025 - 18:16
    +3

    As with almost anything … cold temperatures slow down things.

    but then you are talking about a "fast food place with high turnover" … they go through 1x squeeze bottle EASILY within 2-3 days … which is WELL within food safety limits.

    I'd be more worried about a place - with low sales/turnover … who offer condiments on tables (rather than fast food places).

    • gromit on 24/03/2025 - 16:34
      +1

      depending on the place it would be more likely they go through 2-3 squeeze bottles every day.

  • tenpercent on 22/03/2025 - 18:24
    -5

    Report it. https://www.foodauthority.nsw.gov.au/help/complaints-about-f…

    The USDA recommends not leaving mayo out at room temperature for more than two hours before moving it back into the fridge.

  • dtc on 22/03/2025 - 20:09

    Fast food places go through mayo much faster than the time it takes to go off. They use pasteurised eggs so not raw eggs like home made mayo so much lower chance of salmonella and are blended to be long life when unrefrigersted

    Ever hear of anyone getting food poisoning from a fast food place? The food prep and rules are very strict

    • FSTB on 22/03/2025 - 20:30
      +2

      Fast food places need to adhere to correct food storage requirements regardless of how fast the product gets used

      • dtc on 23/03/2025 - 20:28

        Who said they didn’t?

    • TEER3X on 22/03/2025 - 20:36
      +3

      Ever hear of anyone getting food poisoning from a fast food place?

      Yes all the time. That's probably the most reported avenue.

      • dtc on 23/03/2025 - 20:28

        Major fast food places?

    • Grunntt on 23/03/2025 - 10:49

      The food prep and rules are very strict

      Not directly related to the OP question but this list makes interesting reading in case you think food prep and rules being strict ensure food safety.

      Food Authority NSW Penalty Notice List

      Here's a list of the penalties imposed too if anyone thinks none of them are hit with some significant fines.

      Prosecutions

  • JimmyF on 22/03/2025 - 20:39

    I thought mayonnaise, with eggs being one of major ingredients, should not be stored room temperature on the workbench

    Eggs are not a major ingredient…….

    Have you been to the supermarket and seen the isle of mayo sitting on the shelf at room temp?

    • tenpercent on 22/03/2025 - 20:43
      -2

      Those are all sealed. Ever seen the aisle of canned tuna sitting on the shelf at room temp?

      • JimmyF on 22/03/2025 - 20:50
        -1

        Those are all sealed

        Pfft sealed or not. The point is they don't need to be kept cold 24/7. Mayo is mostly oil, doesn't go off even at room temp.

        Ever seen the aisle of canned tuna sitting on the shelf at room temp?

        same, open a tin and leave if for a few hours, you won't die if you eat it.

        Fast food mayo isn't sitting around for weeks on end. That squeeze bottle would be filled daily at least.

        You'll find the maccas sauce/mayo guns are not in the fridge either.

        • plmko on 22/03/2025 - 23:12
          -1

          Wow just wow…..

          • JimmyF on 23/03/2025 - 10:05
            +2

            @plmko: If you think mayo sitting in a bottle on a bench for an hour over the lunch rush is going to kill you, then WOW JUST WOW indeed.

            Next time you go to maccas, have a look where they store the sauce guns…… You think Maccas knows the correct way to store things? :)

    • Lastchancetosee on 23/03/2025 - 11:11

      Or even the aisle. All at sea.

  • Cluster on 22/03/2025 - 22:35
    +1

    Here is the bigger problem at my local service station that sells pies:

    1. Worker inserts sauce bottle nozzle ALL the way into the pie
    2. The contaminated nozzle with meat on it from multiple pies sits at room temperature, waiting to be inserted into the next pie
    3. Multiple pies are contaminated. I've seen this many times and it turns me off every time.

    I will never eat a servo pie. Never, ever.

    • plmko on 22/03/2025 - 23:10
      +8

      I've never seen a servo sell pies where the worker puts sauce on for you. Are you from the 1970's or something?

      Also who on Earth pre-squirts sauce into the pie. That's just I don't even.

      • BewareOfThe Dog on 23/03/2025 - 01:48

        On maybe, but not In.
        These days they want to sell you a sachet for 50c extra.

      • Cluster on 24/03/2025 - 17:23

        Yeah, I was surprised to see it too. The bottles are kept behind the counter and the worker asks if the customer wants sauce. If the answer is yes, sauce is squirted deep inside the pie. Yeah, it's weird.

        BP service station.

  • BewareOfThe Dog on 23/03/2025 - 01:46
    +1

    Where was the BBQ & Tomato Sauce?

  • Joey2scoops on 23/03/2025 - 08:33
    +1

    Big Mayo has silenced reporting on the deaths arising from fast food mayo. Rise up!

    • LFO on 23/03/2025 - 14:31

      Deaths are mounting by the millions so it almost impossible to silence now …

      :-\

  • saltypete on 23/03/2025 - 09:05

    Its safe from me.

  • Grunntt on 23/03/2025 - 14:04

    I'd be more worried that any business may be using their own in-house produced raw egg based products -

    A survey on the handling and microbiological
    quality of raw egg dressings prepared and sold in
    cafés and restaurants in City of Sydney LGA

  • LFO on 23/03/2025 - 14:30

    Mayonnaise will go obviously rancid when off.
    Like rancid milk, quite easy to avoid.

    I'll be far more worried about hygiene from food preparation staff.

    • gromit on 24/03/2025 - 16:39

      The issue is not the mayo going off, it is stuff like Salmonella. Regardless unless this is some tiny fast food joint that barely has any customers they would be going through squeeze bottles of condiments long before they had any real chance of causing health concerns.

  • b0rnwithabeard on 23/03/2025 - 16:50

    if it's single-use packets, I think you're okay. If it's a normal squeeze bottle, I'd probably give it a miss.

  • valuer on 23/03/2025 - 22:18

    What about that 'long-life' milk? What kind of cow does that come from? And will you have a long life if you drink it?

    • Gdsamp on 24/03/2025 - 00:05

      I am told the shrimp fried this rice….

  • PadreOzv on 24/03/2025 - 17:53

    Have worked at fast food (Nandos) restaurant before. Yes, the mayo and all moyo based sauces have to be kept between 0 and 5 degrees, most likely closed or open fridge.

  • jasiano on 24/03/2025 - 18:27

    your 'craft' or 'premium' mayo brands and the ones you make at home probably have fresh egg(yolks) in them, and yeah they probably should be refrigerated if exposed/out of any length of time.
    That said…. anything that is commercially produced would have had some level of treatment to make them shelf stable for a period of time at room temp. Taking it further the stuff you might get a ''major fast food place" is probably so artificial that any 'egg' in there is/was a highly processed product to begin with where all potential bacteria sources have been nuked away….

    I think you'll be fine.

  • Muppet Detector on 28/03/2025 - 00:14

    Assuming it even is made with eggs, the small amount of time it sits on the bench during busy times isn't enough to cause any worries.

    More worried about hollandaise sauces on your eggs Benedict. Yum yum, there's some salmonella waiting to happen.

  • Muppet Detector on 28/03/2025 - 00:22

    The only thing susceptible to food born pathogens in mayonaisse is eggs.

    Eggs at room temperature aren't the problem.

    The inside of an egg is sterile.

    The only way it can be contaminated by a food born pathogen is if it is artificially introduced to it after it has been cracked open.

    You can't get food poisoning if there are no food borne pathogens in what you are eating.

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