New York Misses List For The Dirtiest Restaurants

New data has identified the states with the worst restaurant hygiene, with New Jersey crowned the filthiest .

A new study led by restaurant furniture experts Affordable Seating has researched which states have the most poorly rated restaurants (2.5 out of five stars or lower) among TripAdvisor reviews that mention bad food hygiene and cleanliness, identifying the ten filthiest states.  

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Top 10 States with the Dirtiest Restaurants

Rank	State	Reviews Mentioning ‘Dirty Restaurant’	Reviews Mentioning ‘Hair in Food’	Reviews Mentioning ‘Rats and Roaches’
1	New Jersey	320,520	1,883	810
2	Florida	4,560	1,691	636
3	California	3,332	1,731	960
4	Arizona	1,759	639	443
5	Texas	1,068	471	232
6	Louisiana	951	412	399
7	Alabama	918	404	141
8	Maryland	884	436	201
9	Nevada	881	579	414
10	Georgia	856	375	216

New Jersey is crowned the state with the dirtiest restaurants, with 320.5k reviews highlighting ‘dirty restaurant’ in reviews, which is a staggering 854% higher than the average across the top ten worst states.  

The state also had the hairiest food, with 1.8k complaints from customers finding hair in their food. Foodies wanting to try the state’s famous disco fries must stay vigilant when scouting out places to eat.  

Second is Florida, with 4.5k complaints of dirty restaurants and an extra 636 reviews mentioning rats and roaches. The state is a popular location for families, bringing in millions of tourists each year - along with hungry critters.  

California ranks third, with 3.3k ‘dirty restaurant’ complaints, and the second-highest number of ‘hair in food’ reviews, at 1.7k.  

The state also had the highest number of rodents reported, with 960 mentions of rats and roaches in eating establishments, 101% higher than the top ten average.  

Arizona and Texas rank fourth and fifth, with 1.7k and 1k ‘dirty restaurants’ mentions across visitor reviews, respectively.  

Louisiana, Alabama, Maryland, Nevada, and Georgia are at the bottom of the top ten, with an average of 898 ‘dirty restaurant’ complaints, 441 instances of ‘hair in food', and 477 rodent issues of ‘rats’ and ‘roaches’ between them.  

Zach Kanoff from Affordable Seating commented on the findings:

“With the ever-growing rush of customers and pressure of working in hospitality, mistakes will be made. It's shocking to see a high volume of complaints regarding food hygiene.   

Food enthusiasts must take extra care in remaining vigilant in spotting any potential food hygiene issues, such as dirty plates, glasses, or cutlery, food not being warmed through, and meat not being thoroughly checked before eating.   

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If a complaint is necessary, it’s worth making one. Hopefully, by doing so, the establishment will improve the quality of its food, making the customers happy and reducing the number of negative reviews.”  