I worked in a restaurant as a teenager and I have to say that it was kept clean. We cleaned up every day and then there was Monday, when we scrubbed the place top to bottom and every one chipped in, including the servers.

That's what I mean - it just seems that our world has changed so much that it's like we just don't care, don't have the respect, etc. And today things are much easier for restaurants! Sure it's a lot of work - but there are more shortcuts that they can use (re: cooking) and better sanitizers, etc. Give me the good ol' days!

My mom would frown on female TV cooks with long hair, and who do not tie up their hair, or cooks who handle food with their hands (like tossing salad with its dressing)! She'd just prefer to use tongs or anything but her hands however clean they are.

So I am with you on the absolute need for cleanliness in the kitchen! And that we can definitely do quality control in our own kitchen.

I personally feel like I prepare food as good as, or usually better than I can buy in a restarant. The times that we do eat out are either because of time, money, or just being too lazy to cook myself.

I used to eat lunch at a chain restaurant, and order French onion soup in a bowl made from sourdough bread. I went there regularly, until the day I saw them bring the soup out in a microwave reheated plastic bag. My thinking is that if I'm going to eat our, the food ought to be cooked individually, and not in mass for thousands, and then frozen, packaged in bags, or whatever.