7 Hard to Clean Surfaces Where Germs Hide in Your QSR/Fast Casual Restaurant

Germs and bacteria love to hide in hard to clean surfaces in your restaurant. What kinds of germs are lurking and what is the health risk to your customer?

Salmonella, cold and flu viruses, bacteria that causes staph infection and other unsavory bacteria are some of the most common germs you'll find in restaurants.

While many establishments train their staff to regularly clean and disinfect kitchens, bathrooms and door handles, there are surfaces in your restaurant that may go unnoticed. QSR/Fast Casual restaurants in particular are embracing technology, self-serve stations, and interactive elements that offer convenience to the customer. With these new technologies, such as table side tablets and touch screens, come unwanted side effects—new places for germs to gather.

Studies have shown that cellphones can carry up to 10 times more bacteria than toilet seats. Why is that?

While toilets tend to get cleaned frequently, because people associate the bathroom with germs, cellphones and other commonly handled objects are often left out of the cleaning routine. — livescience.com

With that in mind, what are some "commonly handled objects" in your restaurant where germs may be lurking? And how can we protect customers from them?

One solution is to continually disinfect. This works for some surfaces, but not all hard-to-clean surfaces like screens and electronics.

Another solution is antimicrobial protective materials. You can apply antimicrobial adhesives and wraps to commonly touched surfaces in your restaurant, and some of these new materials even offer up to 99.99% reduction in unwanted bacteria.

Here are just a few of the hard-to-clean surfaces in your restaurant:

1. Tablet screens at tables—table side screens have been a trend for awhile. We've even seen screens used for advertising in bathroom stalls! Touch screens in restaurants can be a breeding ground for these kinds of germs and therefore in need of constant cleaning or inventive solutions like antimicrobial wraps and materials.

2. Hand rails—customers touch hand railing constantly, making them very difficult to keep clean.

3. Computers/tablet kiosks—keyboards and tablets are used in common areas for gathering survey data or signing-up for a loyalty card.

4. Self-service counter—from self-service drink stations to self-serve ordering stations, these counters typically have screens and POS equipment that may rarely get cleaned.

Editorial credit: DayOwl / Shutterstock, Inc.

5. Tabletops —This particular study found "parents changing their baby's diapers at the table and toilet-training their toddlers in restaurants" and listed tabletops in their top 10 "germiest" places in a restaurant. Tables can easily be wiped down and sanitized, but most tables aren't sanitized between every use. Tables are also a prime area to use antimicrobial films. The wraps can be produced with your tabletop graphics, as well. 

6. POS systems—keyboards and touch screens that employees use throughout the shifts, and credit card swipers that customers touch. These surfaces are rarely disinfected and germs love to gather in all the nooks and crannies in a POS system.

7. Menus—according to this article, menus are one of the "most common germ carriers" in restaurants. Menus change hands many times throughout the day, yet may only get wiped down once at the end of the night.

While some of these areas can only be disinfected the old fashioned way, there are new protective films that can cover touch screens, tablets, POS systems, handrails, menus and more. These applications, along with offering 99.99% reduction in unwanted bacteria, can be customized with print and offer long term durability. If you want to learn more, let us know. We can show you some of the print and technology solutions we provide to QSR/Fast Casual restaurants looking to protect their staff and customers.