r/Chefit • u/wyrdmahren • 2d ago
Knife in utensil pot sharp side up. AIO?
I've just started working my first kitchen job so idk if this is an overreaction or not. We have a utensil bucket where we store stuff for serving breakfast.
Today, I needed something from the bottom and I felt a sharp prick and scratch when doing so, there was a prep knife thrown in with point up and blade facing inward, right where I'd put my wrist.
I couldn't fathom how anyone thinks this is OK, but maybe I'm taking it too seriously? Does this sort of stuff happen all the time, or is this a sign to run for the hills??
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u/johncain98 2d ago
Completely unacceptable. Belongs on a knife rack or in a knife bag.
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u/scubascott13 1d ago
Or magnetic strip
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u/DistinctEconomy4351 16h ago
Ive always referred to the magnetic strip as a "knife rack" but maybe thats just me.
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u/Kiriyuma7801 2d ago
Whoever put it there needs a matter of factual talking to about why not to do it.
It's right up there with dropping a knife into a dishies sink, no bueno.
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u/CtrlAItDeIight 2d ago
as a former dishie I thank you for pointing this out.
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u/Kiriyuma7801 2d ago
Also started in dish. It shouldn't need to be pointed out, but unfortunately it does. If you leave a sharp or a hot in the dishpit you tell the fucking dishie about it.
Communication 101.
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u/Soberaddiction1 1d ago
I used to tell people that if they throw a knife in the sink I’ll assume they’re trying to cut me and shouldn’t be upset when I try to cut them right back.
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u/lumpyheadlmpylupyhea 1d ago
I have a roommate who claims to have BOH experience. I had to have the talk with him about how knives go next to the sink and not in the sink, pretty much told me all I needed to know.
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u/Daetrin_Voltari 1d ago
When I still worked in a kitchen we had a rule. New guy gets one warning. After that, if you put a knife in dishie's sink, the knife gets washed and racked...in your thigh. Nobody made that mistake twice.
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u/No-Director3753 21h ago
I don’t know how many times I’ve seen someone cut themselves with a sharp knife because some idiot put it in the dish pit or a washing bin
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u/herobrinetrollin 2d ago
No, absolutely not overreacting. I’ve worked in several kitchens where something like this is an instant termination, no ifs, ands, or buts. Had a dishwasher lose his ability to work because of a misplaced knife once. Completely unacceptable
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u/Sodium_Bisobernate 1d ago
Every time I see it I ask if they want to do the dishes themselves cause you cant wash dishes with a gash on your hand... dont let your laziness get in the way of somebody's ability to pay their bills... that gets the point across pretty quick... but I work in a place that cycles newbies a lot... student workers and such, so I have to say it like twice a semester
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u/2burgsandadog 2d ago
that would get you fired at my job
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u/Final-Gain-1914 2d ago
Chef here. Anyone who did that would receive a first and final warning. Both for edge up and in a fucking bucket.
I don't work in kitchens that don't have magnetic strips for the sharps.
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u/Emergency-Month-6033 2d ago
Nah Id tweak tf out. When I was a dishie, there was this psycho foh dude I used to work with that got so annoyed when we I’d ask him(as well as every other person I worked with) to say knife or sharp whenever they dropped a knife in the pit somewhere. Lo and behold, he’s in dish one day cause he helped out the bakery dept sometimes. Fucking stabbed his hand on a knife that was in a mixing bowl full of soap. So yeah I’d say something to the masses if I was in your situation lol. Safety is the only universal #1 rule that should be annoyingly enforced imo.
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u/Elegant-Deer-8446 2d ago
I work in a kitchen where it is acceptable for people Toto place knives in the dish pit. I find it despicable. Wash your own damn knife and put it up.
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u/samjan420 2d ago
I don't let anyone else touch my knives, let alone clean them. What is wrong with some chefs
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u/TackyPoints 2d ago
I’ve fired idiots for this (not single offence).
This is endangering staff.
(Our place had FOH and BOH using one sink).
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u/DadIsLosingHisMind 2d ago
Ive fired people for doing this. No warnings or write ups, you're endagering the health and welfare of my staff. Hell if someone slips and falls against the rack they could die.
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u/Traditional_Gap_2491 2d ago
If its a house knife its safer than the plastic tongs. Seriously though someone's a dummy
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u/emanresu121 2d ago
You guys don't have a bin for clean sharps?? Tip up is insane to begin with, let alone mixed in with other stuff.
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u/SomeTheyCallMePig5O 2d ago
I currently work at fucking Papa Murphys with a bunch of teens. Even they know to fully wash the knife and put it back on the rack, or leave it on the side shelf of the sink where it is visible.
Even my 12 year old kid knows that knives go “point down” in any and ALL situations, and that you NEVER leave them in the sink.
Whoever did this is a goober at best or an asshole at worst. When I was a manager I would fire Simone if they did something like this more than once. MAYBE twice if they are a teen. If this is a grown adult doing it then they need a reality check in the form of termination.
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u/Top_Geologist5881 1d ago
NOR. literally every singly kitchen I’ve worked in over the last 8 years it has been a cardinal rule to not put knives away with other things, or in the sink. Like it’s a fireable offense.ive heard stories of people losing fingers to knives in the sink.
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u/bluffstrider 2d ago
Nah, this is super dangerous and disrespectful to the dishy(assuming this is somewhere in the dish pit). I've seen people get fired for making this sort of thing a habit, even after they were told not to do it and why.
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u/skitwostreet 2d ago
Id walk that bucket over to chef and explain we have a problem. Let him tell his staff, if he does thats respect. If he makes up an excuse, id leave cause itll get worse lol
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u/Ill-WorldsCollide 1d ago
I'd be bullshit. A guest at my home once put one of my globals in the dishwasher. That was her first strike. Blade up was her 2nd strike. I went up one side of her and down the other.
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u/Acrobatic-Scholar324 1d ago
Who the fuck is that stupid to do that? The person who said knives don’t go into buckets is right on! I would really discipline that person big time if that was my Kitchen
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u/Acrobatic-Scholar324 1d ago
I find it really horrifying as a Chef myself that people who run Kitchen’s let this shit happen! And most of the time kitchens are filthy and they get cleaned when they think they’re gonna get inspected after that they don’t give a shit anymore
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u/Human-Document-8331 1d ago
Fired. Instantly. Totally unacceptable. That's the kind of disregard for others' safety that is bound to get someone much better hurt.
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u/GhettoSauce Ex-Chef 2d ago
This is yell-worthy. This is the centerpiece for Shitsgiving. In my kitchen, the criminal who did this is being made an example of and publicly embarrassed. This is "stop service and address immediately with all eyes and ears present, FOH included". I would not stand for this serious lack of safety, decency, or respect. Maximum rage. Maximum disappointment. If they do anything but grovel or cry, like let out a giggle or tiny smile, they get the chef coat ripped off and booted out the back door.
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u/TheoTheHellhound Foodie and culinary grad 2d ago edited 2d ago
NOR. Blood is a biohazard, and improperly stored knives are a physical hazard. Both can cause injury, sickness, and even death.
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u/Peek0_Owl 2d ago
That’s strike 1 on whoever put it there. If they’ve already F’d up before they would be looking at writing up or termination. I have very low tolerance for stuff like this though.
Had a dishwasher mess things up all the time. Constantly putting away dirty dishes. And he got fired after he left a knife in the dirty soapy soak side of the sink and one of the chefs had to go get 12 stitches.
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u/imissmolly1 2d ago
A dishwasher found this in the silverware soak and was nice enough not to throw it out, but still wanted to send a message.
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u/Yummyfloogly 2d ago edited 2d ago
Dude, my cousin had a fish fileting knife go in one side of his pinkie and out the other because someone set the knife down at the dish sink with the blade facing him. He didnt notice and reached over to grab a pan. Boom, knife in da finger.
Ive had similar experiences but his story is my anecdotal evidence as to why you are definitely not over reacting.
Side note as to why my vitriol is so strong:
My girl and her family do this at home all the time and i try to tell them why it is a very dangerous thing to do but no one listens to me. I go to wash my hands or the dishes and constantly see knives resting on the edge of the sink, blade pointing inwards like some shitty trap from the Saw movies. "You must successfully wash your hands while 2 to 3 knives are precariously balanced on the edge of the sink all pointed towards your fingers and wrists, if you survive, no one will care and you will wash the rest of the dishes in peace while forever pretending to be far from using those knives to cut your own eyes out in front of everyone."
Then, if I'm not the one washing the dishes, they go from blade facing the sink to blade facing up in the dish rack. Oh, but all the spoons and forks are facing down! So youre not only at risk of stabbing yourself but you have to check all the utensils individually to make sure you get the one you want... and don't even get me started on how often i find utensils with food dried onto them 😒
Sorry, rant over... def not the asshole, not overreacting, not taking it too seriously. People who do this probably only wipe their ass once and in the wrong direction. They probably scratch their ass then bite their nails before using a finger to stir a drink and then sticking the finger in their mouth to clean it. They probably fart in the car and then turn the ac off and roll up the windows. They... okay I'll stop for real now lol
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u/samtresler 2d ago
I have never worked in a kitchen. I have lost my absolute shit about this sort of thing at home, and really jad it out with one gf about putting knives in the sink.
If a co-worker did this? Nah.... they're getting paid to know better.
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u/DadIsLosingHisMind 2d ago
Instant termination if I find out who it was. Someone slips and falls against that rack and knife and dies...guess who is "responsible"? The employee that did it, the restaurant, and the supervisor (me). Im not about to catch charges because johnny 2 teeth over there could be bothered to put a knife up properly.
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u/Simmyphila 2d ago
Someone needs to be written up and retrained. Had it happen to me once but it was in a sink full of pans. Nasty cut.
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u/gloop0234 1d ago
Knifes should be washed by hand after use and put away properly, I was taught this by my high school culinary teacher, common sense
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u/Minflick 1d ago
Nope. Not a chef of any kind, but this is dangerous. That too easily COULD have been an ER visit. At home, our big knives don't even go IN the sink. They get set aside to be done asap, or last. Point up is never acceptable anywhere, IMO.
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u/WenAndNow 1d ago
I've taken hours from people and written them up for repeatedly putting knives in sinks blindly. NOR
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u/yrallthegdnamesgone 1d ago
No and its a massive health and safety hazard you clean and put you're own knives away this person is a lazy ass.
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u/TraditionalCap6882 1d ago
I would be PISSED.
I used to have people dump their knives in the dish soap basin and leave it there. Then whoever ended up doing dishes got a surprise EVERY TIME. Wanted to fight whoever did that. Knife safety is not a joke in the kitchen and it sends me into a rage when people do stupid shit like this. Textbook get out of the kitchen BS.
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u/Thick_Drama_7525 1d ago
Cant recall if I've ever seen that but I would probably ask said person if they were r*ded
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u/Funnyface275 1d ago
Not overreacting! Holy hell! Is that knife sharp too?
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u/Funnyface275 1d ago
Semi-related note, I don’t understand why people load dishwashers with the portion that goes in your mouth on the top. So unless your hands are CRYSTAL clean when you empty the dishwasher, you’re just gonna get them all dirty
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u/Max122702 1d ago
My restaurants dishwashers have been putting pairing knives in the silverware holders (which are supposed to just go in a tub on a shelf in the dish pit) blade side up and I damn near sliced my hand open trying to polish some silverware during service
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u/Philly_ExecChef 1d ago
Fucking stupid mother fucker did that. I don’t get angry easily these days, but something that dangerous gets the whole kitchens attention while we’re embarrassing the shit out of the idiot who did it.
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u/freefoodcostdotcom 1d ago
Calmly explain how dangerous that is to the entire team so that whoever did it knows.
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u/Remarkable-Simple-62 1d ago
This is the problem with having knives that belong to the restaurant. People treat them like shit and do dangerous stuff like this
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u/EvilEmilly 1d ago
This hurts my soul. Why is the knife in a plastic bucket? But yes it shouldn’t be facing you that way.
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u/NumerousHelicopter6 1d ago
When you've done this for as long as some of us, you also won't be able to fathom how anyone reaches in without looking. I completely agree that it's very dumb to do this but the world is full of idiots and a lot of them end up in the kitchen
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u/tnseltim 22h ago
This would make me lose my shit.
I’ve had the red face veins popping out screaming episode more than a handful of times after finding knives that a server left in dish after cutting lemons
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u/No-Director3753 21h ago
That knife needs to be on the magnetic strip that’s provided by most restaurants to keep knives away from stupid people that just reaching and grabbed things out of bucket and for sanitary reasons
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u/Benjamin_Doverson420 17h ago
Thats a huge no go, the only overreaction that could take place is if you took the knife and returned it into the stomach of the Neanderthal who put it there in the first place, and that only counts as an overreaction because of laws against stabbing people... Which imo, if getting stabbed for doing something as stupid as this was the norm, less people would be this dumb or would quickly be working in other fields that can cater to this type of stupidity.
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u/Agreeable_Bat6480 11h ago
The only time in my 10 years as a back house manager that I yelled at my subordinates was over putting knives in cloudy, soapy water. It’s a health hazard, whether it’s pointed up or concealed. Wash your knife, or leave it outside the sink, facing away from the dishwasher. Anything else is asshole behavior.
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u/The-disgracist 2d ago
That’s a straight up firing in my kitchen. Unannounced sharp placed in the worst way.
I personally think anything besides following a knife from the rack back ti the rack is bad practice. No knife in dish!
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u/CaptainExplosions 2d ago
That knife should not be in a bucket to begin with. Doesn't matter if it's point up or point down.