GREENSBORO, NC -- You know that little disclaimer at the bottom of some menus -
Consuming raw or undercooked meat, seafood, shellfish or eggs may increase your risk of foodborne illness especially if you have certain medical conditions.
It turns out a restaurant can lose points for not putting it on the menu. Chef and G-T-C-C instructor Keith Gardiner says, "The health department really wants it on the menu itself as an advisory for consumers that may not know it completely or understand it that consuming things like that - runny eggs, medium rare ground beef, rare tuna - any of those things - raw oysters - could have pathogens or bacteria on them and could make you sick."
Keith says, "That puts the emphasis to the customer. They know. You're putting the warning out there. So if they decide to still eat it, it puts more of the liability on them and takes some of it off the restaurants."
Keith goes on to says you used to not be able to get an over easy egg and people that like that runny yolk one, want that runny yolk. And so they stopped ordering a lot of these things. Some people want a medium rare or medium burger. The written warning allows them to do that.
Keith says, "A lot of people think rare beef, a steak, is a problem but it's really not. The surface area has reached the minimum temperature. it's safe. the ground beef is a problem because it's all mixed through. If there is bacteria it could be in the center."
Health inspectors can take as much as one point if restaurants don't put the warning on their menu.
