Are you still getting take-out?

[ronandannette]

We've done takeout 3 times now, but only hot stuff that could be dumped out of the original containers and microwaved to kill any virus contamination. But just a couple days ago both my kids had a rough time with school so I took them to Dairy Queen because they've been begging for it and I knew it would lift their spirits. I'm so nervous about it that up until that day I had refused to allow them to get anything takeout that could not be heated--no icees, no frosties, no ice cream cones. I'm still feeling icky about it but it did help my kids feel better and gave them a sense of normalcy.

Is there anything anybody could say or any information be provided that could assuage your anxiety? I don't think you need to force yourself to do anything you're not comfortable with but the idea of you agonizing over it is sad.

 

[tinkerhon]

We usually being in olive garden once a week - the one by us is very good, and the service is excellent - their but one, take one offer gives you a ton of food.

We've gone thru Wendy's drive-thru a few times , but the service is horrific and they no longer have burgers ! ( sometimes I crave one- normally, we.stick with their salads )

And we've ordered pizza a few.times -
We microwave everything for 15-20 secs before we eat

 

[ronandannette]

We usually being in olive garden once a week - the one by us is very good, and the service is excellent - their but one, take one offer gives you a ton of food.

We've gone thru Wendy's drive-thru a few times , but the service is horrific and they no longer have burgers ! ( sometimes I crave one- normally, we.stick with their salads )

And we've ordered pizza a few.times -
We microwave everything for 15-20 secs before we eat

Why not?

 

[NYCgrrl]

I actually don't think you can. I've tried looking it up and can't find anything. If it exists, will you please share? I'm not being argumentative - if it's really recommended, I want to change the way we're doing things; especially what we order.

https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/newsletter/food-safety-and-Coronavirus.html

I’ve been using the CDC and FDA websites to drive me food/disinfecting habits so I don’t go down an OCD rabbit hole (which is incredibly difficult as I already have tendencies towards illogical cleaning rituals). I have not seen this advice from either agency, which is why I asked if you had a link or could point me to where you saw this as I might have missed it.

I don't think you are being argumentative at all and as well your question is a good one.

Now in part I haven't kept up to date with the whole take out food protocol mostly because we so rarely eat in that manner. I am however sure that initially we were told to reheat takeout food. Did the rules come from a local, state, or Fed source? Don't really recall since we've been under a direct or self imposed quarantine since late Feb. or early Mar. Would have made sense anyway to me since takeout food isn't hot enough when it gets to us (multi-dwelling 18 floors up from the lobby and 20 + minutes for the driver to get here from the restaurant. As well most delivery services use paper and plastic bags not insulated ones). Thus for my locale and circumstances it makes sense to reheat food pandemic or no.
OK enough about my sad sorry life and on to your specific question:

Current CDC guidelines say it's an unproven myth to nuke takeout food to rid it of virus as enough testing hasn't been done to prove the original thinking.

This is the most recent link I can find that dispels a variety of thoughts:

Is it true that microwaving/reheating food delivery items until they are hot enough that steam arises reduces your risk?




Alexander Spatari

There's only a little truth to this—emphasis on a little.

"There are studies that show that other coronaviruses (such as the one that causes SARS) are temperature sensitive and will be destroyed at 149 degrees for 3 minutes," says Cronin. "This is because the protein layer that surrounds it can be destroyed by heat."

But that's evidence based on a different coronavirus—not the one that causes COVID-19.

"We don't yet have enough information to know if COVID-19 reacts similarly," Cronin says. "There is no evidence that shows that heating or microwaving your food until steam rises is effective in killing the virus, and no evidence to suggest that this is even necessary."

https://www.menshealth.com/nutritio...d-ordering-coronavirus-covid19-safety-health/

HTH and sorry for any misconceptions I perpetuated.

PS: I was not worried so much about the food being tainted since gloves, masks and hair nets are the norm; my concern was more for the containers the food came in.
@DisneyJamieCA -Sorry it took me so long to respond. Wasn't avoiding you or anyone else; RL got in the way.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Why not?

Wendy's has unfortunately been affected by meat shortages here primarily because they rely on fresh meat. Other places rely more on frozen beef and so have not been as affected.

Around me it's only certain burger items off the menu but I have been able to get a burger from them (I think it was the smaller burger I was able to get). It's a temporary thing not a switch for a permanent removal.

 

[SmallWorld71]

I will say that for anyone who is nervous, that not all take out processes are the same at each place. DS21 works in the kitchen at a local, very popular seafood restaurant. The kitchen is like a fine tuned machine and I know from DS about all the safety precautions they are following. Ordering is very easy. You call ahead and pay by credit card. When you arrive, they direct you to a particular parking spot where you wait and then the 'runners' will bring your food to your car and put it directly in your trunk. You don't ever come into contact with a single person.

 

[MetalMasterC]

I ordered Captain D's the other day and went to pick it up. Ordering was super simple, intuitive, and didn't take long. I would totally do it again if I ever feel froggy enough even long after the quarantines are over.

I'm willing to think most people are skeptical with online ordering not really because of health issues, but an increased possibility of something getting screwed up. Not to mention people skeptical about paying online with all the hackers out there.

 

[mom2rtk]

We've done takeout 3 times now, but only hot stuff that could be dumped out of the original containers and microwaved to kill any virus contamination. But just a couple days ago both my kids had a rough time with school so I took them to Dairy Queen because they've been begging for it and I knew it would lift their spirits. I'm so nervous about it that up until that day I had refused to allow them to get anything takeout that could not be heated--no icees, no frosties, no ice cream cones. I'm still feeling icky about it but it did help my kids feel better and gave them a sense of normalcy.

Please don't worry. If drive-thru from DQ could kill you, I'd be dead by now. That line these days is definitely killer though.

 

[mom2rtk]

We've actually dined in at 2 restaurants in the past week. Such a nice change in pace. Just got the notice that our Cheesecake Factory is opening this coming week. They have lots of patio seating and we're looking forward to a lovely outing

 

[tvguy]

Wendy's has unfortunately been affected by meat shortages here primarily because they rely on fresh meat. Other places rely more on frozen beef and so have not been as affected.

Around me it's only certain burger items off the menu but I have been able to get a burger from them (I think it was the smaller burger I was able to get). It's a temporary thing not a switch for a permanent removal.

McDonalds has been using fresh beef since 2018, I have not heard of an meat shortages there. I was surprised to hear that some Wendy's in San Jose, California had a shortage of beef. 25% of the nations beef is processed here in California, and none of our processing plants has shut down.

 

[tvguy]

Restaurants were allowed to reopen dine in here yesterday, but I don't see a need to switch from taking out from restaurants anytime soon. Just to be safe.

 

[wenrob]

Since a previous poster has said this is needed (reheat food), but hasn’t been able to share the proof she says is out there, will one of you please share? Again, not being argumentative, but I have yet to see this advice and if it is out there and I’ve missed it, I need to rethink ordering the salad.

I really think it came from that video of the guy telling people to sanitize their groceries and soak their produce in hot, soapy water (don’t do that, you could make yourself sick.) It was at the beginning and it got passed around and people were doing it and somehow it became “recommended” by experts that then became “check the CDC.” A big game of “telephone” if you will. I think it makes some people feel better to do it and it doesn’t hurt anything but it would have to be a perfect storm to get Covid from food.

 

[tasha99]

No take out or restaurant food since mid-February. We were locking down other than work and family visits about a month before our state did.

 

[22Tink]

We've had take out but not nearly as often as pre Covid. Probably only 4 or 5 times since our restaurants closed to sit down dining back in March.

 

[tinkerhon]

Why not?

Yep. Meat shortage. And it's sad because McD and BK have burgers, but Wendy's best (imho) by far !

 

[Pooh2]

At least twice a week to support our favorite local places.

 

[WorldWacky]

We avoided it for a while but did get pizza twice, Hibachi takeout for Mother’s Day (now THAT was a treat!) and just this past Wednesday, we ordered pickup from the diner. We have been HANKERING for good New York diner food! And it did not disappoint. The process couldn’t have been easier. They brought it out to the car and put it in the popped trunk. And the guy was wearing a mask. So only four times since March 15th, but I’d do it again no problem. We have not been reheating.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

We've been getting take-out about twice a week since the shelter-in-place order began. Unfortunately, we have not had good luck with the delivery services (Door Dash and Uber Eats). There's usually something missing from the order, either entire entrees or condiments, salad dressing, etc. It got frustrating. Now we look for restaurants that offer curb-side pick up. At least that way we can check through the order and make corrections while we're still there.

The last time we got a delivery was particularly weird. I usually just pass the laptop around for everyone to read the menu and put in their order, so I don't always know exactly what's coming. The delivery guy showed up and handed me a bag of food, plus a milkshake in a cup (no bag, just handed me the cup). I assumed one of my boys ordered it so I took it. As we started taking out the food, we realized that no one ordered a milkshake and my side salad was missing. The delivery came back to the door with another bag and said, "Sorry, this is also for you but the milkshake is not." So I took the salad and gave the milkshake back.

I'm pretty sure he had multiple orders to deliver from that restaurant. He probably took the milkshake to the person who ordered it. The disturbing part is that he handed it to me. I took it to my kitchen. I opened the lid and look to see what it was. DS also opened the lid. By the time we determined that none of us ordered it, it had been in our kitchen for a few minutes and multiple people had touched it. When you think about it, you really don't know where your food has been and who has touched it. At least with curbside pick-up it goes from the kitchen to your car. I would love to support the delivery services, but we've had too many issues with them. Another time we added a sourdough loaf to an order from a sandwich shop. The delivery guy brought it in a paper bag with the end of the loaf sticking out. This is how the shop usually packages their loaves, but it's kind of gross to think it was lying on his car seat or he might have touched or even sneezed on it. I cut off about a third of the loaf and tossed it. Last week we just did an online order from the place and picked it up.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

McDonalds has been using fresh beef since 2018, I have not heard of an meat shortages there. I was surprised to hear that some Wendy's in San Jose, California had a shortage of beef. 25% of the nations beef is processed here in California, and none of our processing plants has shut down.

Only their quarter pounder is fresh. Other burgers are flash frozen and then delivered for McDonald's.

 

[EveDallas]

Sorry I should be more clear. There are bad things going on in the kitchen even before COVID. You risk of contracting the illness based on workers in the kitchen isn't different for people dining in versus getting the food delivered. Also isn't a bigger risk what is going on in the meat packing plants with many people getting sick?

That's because people work shoulder to shoulder in those plants. Nothing to do with the meat itself.