Do you clear your table after eating at fast food chains?

I'd say 95% of people in Australia drop their trash in the bins when eating at a fast food place. If they get takeaway, most people seem to leave the rubbish in their car . It's so easy to slide the rubbish from the tray into the bin and put the tray on top. The table is then clean for the next person. If everyone did this the tables would always be clean hopefully. It's common courtesy I feel.

Not always

Yes, clearing the table ina fast food place is the correct thing to do. I dont go to these places anymore because the food there is not tolerable to my stomach. The stuff can hardly be considered food really.

Hi, MMT! At home, we always clear the table after we are done eating, so, I don't think it's because of the upbringing that some of us leave the trays and plates when we are finished eating at the fast food outlet. When I was so young I used to see most people, I mean almost all of them would never clear the table after eating at the fast food restaurant, so, I thought it was supposed to be that way and I have become accustomed to that practice, which is of course has got me thinking as I am responding to this discussion. Is it because there are waiters and waitress that will do the job that we leave them at the table?? Probably so unless there is a sign where the customers must clean the table then, I guess everyone will start practicing it.

I do not know where you are from. I am from the US and it is customary for the customer to clear their own table at a fast food restaurant (McDonalds,Wendys,Burger King and so on) If you go to a set down or a buffet style restaurant the waiter or waitress clears the table for a tip (usually 10%-15% of bill). The tip is just a understood concept at these type of places.

I think it's normal for people to clear off their table in a fast food place, at least in the US. I always try and clean it up the best I can and then all the waiters have to do is wipe it down. If there were seperate bins I would seperate them, honestly I don't see that much. I hate to go in to eat and all the tables have junk on them and sometimes the ones that are cleared aren't wiped off. If you can't clean up for some reason I think you should leave a tip. In a regular reasturant you leave a tip for the waiter for their service and if you can't clean up in a fast food chain it's more for them to do so they should be compensated.

I think at a fast food chain that you should clear the table after you get done eating. I try to grab napkins and wipe off any mess I made but if I cant I at least make sure to throw the trash in the garbage. When I go out with my family they usually dont clear the table they just leave it on the table for the workers to clean up. That bothers me. We make a pretty big mess when we eat with using a bunch of napkins and the kids get food all over. When I ate at a restaurant with my friend one time she kept cleaning up her messes as she went and her side of the table was so clean. I never noticed before that how messy we are when we eat since I always clean it up when we are done I just never thought anything of it. After seeing her clean up her mess as she was eating I remarked that it probably isnt fun to eat with someone and see them make such a mess while you are trying to eat. So after that I have tried to clean up as we eat instead of waiting until the end.

I will actually yes because I don't like to see a mess of any kind, whether it's in public or at home. Besides, I think that's just the way that I was raised, to have respect and consideration for others, and to be tidy. It's your own mess with those disposable paper cups and plates, so I think that you should be cleaning it up. Fast food places often because crowded very quickly, and would you really want to see other people's garbage piling up on the tables? It's not a very pretty sight to see. But I live here in Canada and I've observed this also in many European countries as well. I have noticed it seems that people that people that appear to look more, grungy or lower class usually leave their mess's behind.

I don't think that is a good manner when after eating at the fast food is to clean your plates or the table? Those foreigners is aware of cleanliness I think. But that is unusual after eating is to clean your table...

I sometimes start cleaing the table or gathering the plates but soon stopped by the waiters to stop it.Its out of habit for me. But yes different countires have different traditions. But its I guess a good gesture when u are in mac donalds o r KFC etc

what a nice attitude they have. I hope we Filipinos ever learn to clean up our mess too. i just wonder why richer countries have this more disciplined attitude than poorer countries when I was younger, i worked in a semiconductor US owned company and we were required to do the same. their motto:"clean as you go". there was a place where in we separate the spoons, forks, plates, cups on their designated bins. at those times, i carried that habit when i ate outside but my other friends would usually laugh at me so i couldn't do it. i think it's not laughable at all. sad to say, the only thing i can do now is to fix them neatly on the tray so that waiters easily separate them when they clean the table.

in england it seems the custom to clear your table and return your tray to the stack when you are done. At the very least you are expected to group everything onto one tray to make it easily disposable.

I live in the United States and I notice that many people do not clear their tables. I always do. The people who work in fast food restaurants are not "servers". They do not get tips. They should only be expected to make sure the tables are clean, not pick up our trash. Knowing the so many Americans leave their trash on the tables at fast food restaurants angers me. There are trash receptacles meant for the diners to throw away their trash. American diners not doing so tells me that we are a lazy culture and expect everyone else to do things for us and we have no respect for other people. Please note, I have worked in fast food, so I am somewhat biased. It's not a bad thing, though, because I go out of my way to make sure that the employees of any establishment that I am patroning know that I have respect for them and what they do.

Hi!! I wouldn't like to talk on behalf of my country but I surely leave the table for the waiters or the cleaning staff that is assigned the job.In fact I have this habit of spilling more rather than eating and almost every time I eat at a fast food joint its for sure m going to spill the drink or drop some food on the table lol.There are some people I have also notices who make it a point to trash their plates into dustbin and that's really a good thing to do.Its bad on my part that I have never done that but I also feel that since its the job of the staff assigned to do the work,why should I do it?Have a good day,take care!!

It is customary to pick up your own trash and clean up after yourself in our city's fast food restuarants. The staff will wipe down the tables after, but we clean our own trash.

Hey Money! Yes and No. If there is a waitress, I dont clear. However, I get everything together. I put the food on one plate. I try to make it as easy as possible for the waitress. We must remember that they get tipped for this. If you dont intend to tip, then you should clear the table.If its a fast food restaurant where you go up to a counter and order your food, I definitely clear my table. You're supposed to. Its only right. However, there are people that just leave it. They're just plain ignorant. The practice is this: If you go to a restaurant where you have a person taking your orders, you dont have to clear. You can help by stacking your plates and taking care of the paper goods. Its not necessary and would not be considered rude if you didnt do it. However, In a fast food restaurant where you order your food at a counter, you should clean up after your meal. Usually after you are finished you throw all your trash away, stack the tray next to the trash barrel and go. An employee will wash your table and sweep. In my country you should always pick up after yourself. DONT throw cups and napkins in the street because there's no barrel. Wait, Look for one. Unfortunately citizens dont always follow this procedure. This why there is pollution and cities look so dirty. If we all took responsibility for our own trash only, what a difference it would make. Great discussion friend. dl

I always clean off the table when I eat in a fast food restaurant. Every thing is plastic so is not saved. If I eat in a regular restaurant then I would not clean off the table. I don't know where you are from but if you left your table dirty in a fast food place in Brooklyn NY you would definitely have your feeling hurt on the way out.

I always clear my table no matter where I am - or at least make it neater for the bus staff to remove. But, in Europe, it's amazing. Their consideration for others who come behind them and their respect for their towns in general far surpasses anything here in the US. They also have carts where you can put your trays of trash when you're done eating so that the table is clear for the next customer. When the carts are full, their staff removes them and puts an empty cart (think hospital carts carrying trays of food to patients) out for new customers. They then empty each tray into the trash in the back. They're very big on recycling and being neat. Their cities are almost without variation neat and clean. We, on the other hand, throw trash out the windows of our cars while driving and think nothing of it. I've seen people standing next to a trash can who throw their food wrappers on the ground. I know people whose entire attitude is "it's not my job - let them pay someone to do it". I wasn't raised that way. Apparently, neither were most Europeans.

Hi moneymakingtoday. It all depends on the fast food chains. For every fast food I eat from, I and all eaters are responsible for dumping their trays after we finish eating. If you go to a place like Shoney's then you can leave your tray and uneaten or eaten food on the table. The waiter or waitress will come and clean it up when you are gone. I know that I do try to clean up any mess on the table so that it will make their jobs easier. But that is my own doing, it does not have to be done though. It is something that I accustomed to doing.

I've always cleared the table of paper containers, partially eaten food, etc. I thought everybody did, except slobs. If you will notice, there is a trash container near the exit just for that purpose.