Different people have different reasons for where they decide to stay when traveling. It could be cost or distance to whatever they’ve traveled for. Maybe they have status or points at Hyatt or Marriott or wherever so that takes priority.
For people traveling with families, the decision of “which hotel” may boil down to free breakfast. I mean, people gotta eat. And feeding a family of 4, 5, 6 or even more winds up becoming an expensive proposition, even if it’s just the local iHOP or Waffle House – especially if the kids in tow are teenagers. So, being able to give them a whole meal for free can save a family a whole lot of money.
Beware!
However a woman who says she worked in the hotel industry for years warns against eating most of those free breakfasts.
Brandi Augustus, 38, currently works as an office manager for a research and education center in the greater Knoxville area. However, according to her bio, she spent 15 years in the hospitality industry, working as a front desk agent and night auditor at various hotels in the area.
In late 2021, Augustus took to TikTok to explain what some hotel owners do to save money on those free breakfasts, and why you’re probably better off not eating them.
“I don’t know how to say this without being attacked by people in the industry, but y’all, if your hotel serves a hot continental breakfast, eggs, waffles, stuff like that, don’t eat that s**t,” Agustus says in the video, which has been viewed 1.6 million times since it first posted in November 2021.
“They (meaning hotel management and corporate offices) don’t give a s**t about that breakfast,” she says, referring to corporate and management.
Augustus gave some examples of her claims. She said the breakfast stations weren’t maintained well; i.e. the waffle maker was rarely cleaned, and the waffle batter would be reused, “reused until it starts to smell like beer.”
She also said she was told by the person who was training her to “use one paper towel to clean everything all night,” because, “It was environmentally friendly.”
“I would say if you were to do a hotel breakfast, or whatever, like that is a qualifier for you to pick the hotel, do like a DoubleTree; do something that has like a chef that makes your breakfast with the breakfast included,” she suggested.
Here’s the video. Heads up that it’s NSFW (adult language):
@brandiaugustus Don’t eat the free breakfast! #hotelhacks #nightaudit #hotel
The comments!
The video has amassed over 5400 comments over time. Of course, there were plenty of people who replied just to offer a melodramatic, “Ohhhhh Nooooo!” and the like. Quite a few people commented about the scary music in the video too ;-). But for those who claimed they were also night auditors or other hotel employees (past or present tense), the comments seemed to go both ways.
Total agreement
Some were saying this happened all the time:
- AS AN EX HOTEL AUDITOR YES!! I was being nosey looking in the air fryer, microwave. It was REPULSIVE. You better off eating at McDonald’s bro. — shay
- I used to work a Hampton inn they don’t clean the waffle makers like they should and the drink dispensers have mildew and residue from not cleaning 😳 — Cam
- This is way true for Best Western — Maememae (Augustus never said what hotel chains were “guilty” but she replied to this comment with a ” 🎯 ” emoji)
- No I’m in the industry DONT DO IT. UNLESS IT HAS A Restaurant that gets inspections. The health department does not inspect the kitchen — Lauren Colosanti
- As a night auditor for a very popular hotel, she telling the truth!! Stick to a the pre-package foods, also check the room before you bring luggage in — Ms.Blu
- U ain’t Lyin. I worked at one where the owners had housekeeping bring left over items back from rooms to be put back into the breakfast area. If it could be reused in a diff way or made to look untouched. It went right back up there! — Maggen
- you are doin the lord’s work here. first time I’ve ever had spoilt milk was as a child at a holiday inn express – Rachel
No way, no how
While others said nope, not where they worked:
- Hmm 🤔. I worked at hotels before doing breakfast 🥞 & what I witness none of that s**t happen. We were cleaning like w restaurant. We served real breakfast and we cleaned with sanitizer rags and wash the dishes. Hilton Brand Hotels like Embassy and Doubletree — Captivated2000
- i work at a hotel and out breakfast cook comes in at 5am every morning and he makes fresh pastries, loafs, eggs, and ham or sausage everymorning.. — sarah
- Not my Hampton, you’ve had bad management
- the holiday inn i worked was very strict on cleanliness, fresh food, and all…. idk about others though. – D34CTIV4T3D50UL
- Yea because I’ve worked as a breakfast attendant and everything was fresh and clean every single day. Cook,clean,refill, repeat. — Turquoise Dixon
- ex hilton regional.. if I caught any of my properties people would have been fired on the spot. reusing waffle batter?! heck no 😳 — Elf
- oh hellllls nah! I worked at a holiday in express and on my shifts I made sure I 90000000000% my tables were clean, my utensils were sanitized like I did everything like it was my house cause 🤢🤢🤢 I could never do that to another human — Megs
- What.. I worked at Hyatt House and they did not do this 🙄 — Grey Sweatpants Season
- I’ve worked for a hotel for 6 years and I work Hilton Hampton Inn and Suites and that’s not true — Andrea E. Sola’
- I had an internship at doubletree and they were really strict with cleanliness and health. They sanitized the preping tables between different product — vicky
So which is it?
Honestly, it’s probably a little from Column A and a little from Column B and all stems back to management. Some managers are on the ball and make sure that things are done right. Others are lazy, absent, etc….or seriously ARE all about saving as much money as possible, even if it’s to the possible detriment of guests.
But as a couple of commenters mentioned, if Augustus was so concerned about what was happening, why didn’t she ever speak to the Board of Health or a similar authority?
In looking at Augustus’ other videos, she’s also a professional comic and storyteller – so it’s also possible that she exaggerated what she saw, or despite working at a variety of hotels, she only saw these issues at one (very bad) hotel, but it made a better story to say that multiple hotels do it.
Personally, I’m not a big “continental buffet” person. Little in them looks particularly appetizing, to begin with, and I’ve read enough stories of people’s unhygienic actions at buffets at restaurants and on cruise ships (we’ll start by not washing their hands in the bathroom and leave it at that) that I try to avoid them when I can. This video just reinforces that train of thought.
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