A couple of years ago, I started my 13-month employment at a local McDonald's restaurant. Like any job, there were ups and downs, but overall, I still consider it a pretty decent first job. Would I do it again? Never in a million years.

[post_page_title]Let's Go Behind The Counter And Learn More[/post_page_title]

But one thing I'm always asked is whether or not working at McDonald's has put me off their food for life. Because let's face it, most of us love a cheeky cheeseburger, but if you saw how it was all made, would it be just as appetizing?

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[post_page_title]Drive-Thru Is Quicker[/post_page_title]

If you're really after FAST food, then go through the drive-thru instead of eating in. Employees are instructed to prioritize drive-thru orders over the restaurant customers. The drive-thru experience is supposed to last 90 SECONDS from placing your order to receiving your food.

[post_page_title]Staff Don't Eat The Leftovers[/post_page_title]

There's always been a discussion about what happens with all the food waste. Whether it's the end of the day or the timer on the food product has run out, we are forced to put any food waste in the trash. We don't get to take it home or give it away - it's thrown into a special food waste trashcan and each item is counted to manage exactly what products have been wasted.

[post_page_title]But We Do Break The Rules[/post_page_title]

You'd think working at McDonald's over a year would be enough to put anyone off the food, but that's far from the truth. It may be against company policy, but the temptation is just too much... Whilst the manager's back is turned, every employee will snack, but if we're caught, we're in big trouble. I was once sent home without pay.

[post_page_title]And We Get McDonald's For Lunch[/post_page_title]

This may seem like a pretty awesome employee perk, but after a while of doing it every day, you start to see some serious health side effects... Depending on how long your shift is, you are entitled to an employee meal during your break time. You can basically pick from any standard meal on the menu, and no additions can be made.

[post_page_title]Most Employees Hate Working Nights[/post_page_title]

A lot of people think working a day at a McDonald's restaurant is the worst job in the world. However, it's made twice as bad when the sun goes down... A McDonald's employee has to deal with a lot of customer complaints on a good day, but when the customers are drunk, the shifts become an absolute nightmare.

[post_page_title]The Timers[/post_page_title]

It's true, not all the food at McDonald's is cooked fresh-to-order. Any time we cook food that isn't being used for an order right away, we keep it in a heater with a set time limit. When the timer counts down to zero, we're supposed to take the food out and throw it away. However, most employees will just reset the timer and leave the food in there until it's sold.

[post_page_title]Fresh Food[/post_page_title]

Now, if you want to make sure you're going to get a fresh meal that hasn't been sat under a heat lamp for hours, you should always make a "grill" order... Whenever an employee makes an order that has been altered from the original menu, the kitchen staff receive the "grill" order and must cook it from scratch.

[post_page_title]Fish Products[/post_page_title]

This sandwich has been around since 1962, but has never gained the popularity of a Big Mac!  Most restaurants won't even bother keeping a Filet-O-Fish or fish fingers in the heaters, because the chances of them being ordered are rare. Then, out of nowhere, we'll receive five orders all needing fish. This takes time, which isn't great when you're working in fast food.

[post_page_title]Know What You're Ordering![/post_page_title]

So what's the biggest problem with working at McDonald's? The managers? The smell of cooking oil constantly in your clothes? Nope, it's the customers... The guys on the tills honestly cannot stand dealing with stupid and indecisive customers. Know what you're going to order before you reach the counter!

[post_page_title]Bored Staff Play Games[/post_page_title]

When the staff gets bored, they will mess around. I once watched a guy build a fort out of Happy Meal boxes, and employees will often have bets on the customers. But perhaps the greatest "in-joke" is ringing a bell whenever a hot girl comes to the till - all work in the kitchen ceases, as employees peer through to check them out.

[post_page_title]Extra Sauce??[/post_page_title]

Depending on the restaurant, customers can pay up to 25 cents for some extra sauce. But you can get around this just by making sure you ask the right people... However, most crew members (avoid the managers) really don't care, and as long as you ask nicely, they'll be happy to throw you some extra sauce on the side.

[post_page_title]Most Restaurants Really Are Clean[/post_page_title]

Most people I've met have always heard horror stories about the condition and cleanliness of a McDonald's restaurant. But the truth couldn't be more different... Behind the counter, the kitchens are well maintained, and hygiene is extremely important. Most staff are forced to wear hairnets and must wash their hands whenever they re-enter the kitchen.

[post_page_title]Monopoly Season[/post_page_title]

Everybody loves McDonald's whenever the Monopoly game tokens return - and this includes the employees. Despite the fact employees are forbidden from winning any top prizes, that doesn't stop us checking every single empty cup we find in the restaurant... If we do end up winning, we'll just give it to a friend and split the prize!

[post_page_title]Employee Stars[/post_page_title]

Some members of staff have them, others don't - but most customers are not even sure what they represent. Here's everything you need to know about the "Stars"... Staff members have to go through a training program for each star, where each one usually reflects a small pay rise and attributes towards obtaining a higher position.

[post_page_title]Microwaves In The Kitchen[/post_page_title]

A lot of questions I often got asked about were regarding how much of the food was actually microwaved. Well, we do have microwaves in the kitchen, but they're only used for certain things... The kitchen does have a microwave, but the only things we microwave are pancakes and oatmeal. Relax - all your burgers are cooked thoroughly on a grill. I promise!

[post_page_title]Ronald McDonald[/post_page_title]

He's supposed to make kids feel relaxed and happy about eating their Happy Meals, but this guy is literally the personification of all my nightmares... The famous McDonald's mascot is actually real. The company pays people to dress as the fast-food icon and visit stores to entertain the customers and staff.

[post_page_title]PLEASE Don't Order Fries Without Salt[/post_page_title]

It's may sound easy, but cooking a fresh batch of fries without salt is a painstaking process. Not only do we need to fry an entire bag of fries just for you, and all the equipment used to make and package the fries need to be cleaned to get the salt off them.

[post_page_title]Burger Patties Take Just 42 Seconds To Cook[/post_page_title]

So, what really is in a standard beef burger patty, and how long do they take to cook? Well, there's a reason McDonald's is called 'fast food'... That's right, for a standard border patty (used in Big Macs and Hamburgers) it takes just over forty seconds to cook, and there's no flipping because they're cooked on both sides at the same time.

[post_page_title]Do You Really Want Scrambled Egg?[/post_page_title]

McDonald's always proudly states how they only use "free-range eggs" for their McMuffins, but what about the eggs in their Big Breakfasts? The scrambled egg that is usually found on the Big Breakfast actually comes out of a carton...

[post_page_title]Oh, You Wanted Decafe?[/post_page_title]

People love their coffee! But just because you're craving a caffeine fix doesn't mean you have to be rude. Some people want decaf - perfectly understandable and we're happy to help. However, if you order decaf and then get impatient that there's not any brewed, then there's a good chance you'll be getting half a cup of regular coffee with half a cup of hot water mixed in.

[post_page_title]Drop It Like It's Hot[/post_page_title]

Okay, I've never seen anybody spit in a customer's food - but dropping food is a different story. When you're under pressure to get an order out, mistakes can happen, but as long as a manager didn't see, employees will pick up food from the floor and send it out.

[post_page_title]Learn What A "Meal" Is[/post_page_title]

The concept of what a "meal" at McDonald's is really isn't that complicated. If you haven't figured it out by now, maybe you shouldn't eat there anymore... Most items on the menu come as a "meal", which means it includes a side order (fried, salad, etc) and a drink.

[post_page_title]There Is No Secret Menu[/post_page_title]

We've all seen those suped-up burgers trending on social media, with the explicit instructions that you can order them using a secret McDonald's code... Despite the many websites and videos claiming there is - there isn't. The images you see of "super burgers", they are either made by bored employees or constructed from multiple burgers at the table by customers.

[post_page_title]Drive-Thru Workers Don't Sit Down[/post_page_title]

Standing at the drive-thru window may sound like an absolute dream shift to most of you, but for those who have to do it, it's a nightmare. When you're working ten hours on drive-thru, you have to stand in the same spot, whether there are cars coming through or not. It's agony on your back.

[post_page_title]The Beef Is Grade A[/post_page_title]

Many people love to blast McDonald's food as being cheap, low-grade cardboard! There are no two ways about this; the beef is quality. Sure, it may not be from your favorite cut of the cow, but it is of the highest quality. After all, when you're serving it to millions of people every day, it needs to be! So don't believe the horror stories.

[post_page_title]The Milkshake Machines Are Neglected[/post_page_title]

There's nothing better on a hot summer's day than a thick McDonald's shake. But sadly, many restaurants neglect the weekly machine clean because it's such a chore. Seriously, I've seen machine fill with gunk - just Google it! Best way to avoid this is to go to a McDonald's you can trust! (Often if they're really busy, or really quiet.)

[post_page_title]The McMuffin Eggs ARE Real Eggs[/post_page_title]

A lot of people I've spoken to refuse to eat the McMuffin because they hate the round "rubbery" eggs - which has always confused me. The eggs in McMuffins are 100% real, free-range eggs that are cracked in-store and cooked that morning with just a little bit of water and butter. There is absolutely nothing wrong with them.

[post_page_title]The Ice Cream Machine Really Is Broken[/post_page_title]

We've all been into McDonald's and asked for an ice cream, only to be told the machine is broken. Now, it may seem like laziness, but it's actually the truth. It's a temperamental and complicated piece of equipment, which means it does break down more than any other machine in the restaurant. So if the cashier says it's broken, it's broken.

[post_page_title]It Really Is Addictive[/post_page_title]

Most people associate addiction with illegal hard substances. However, research by the Scripps Research Institute in California discovered that the food from McDonald’s is actually just as addictive as hard substances. This is down to the dangerously high sugar content in the food. This, in turn, generates too much dopamine.

[post_page_title]We Judge People Who Bring Their Children[/post_page_title]

The fact is, we know McDonald's is bad for us, but as adults, we can make calculated choices in our diets, and are able to have a run if we eat too many burgers. However, kids only eat what their parents give them. So if a parent is feeding their kid fast food multiple times a week, we are going to judge, because it's just wrong.

[post_page_title]We Do Try To Recreate The Ads[/post_page_title]

We've all seen the ads that make burgers look huge and irresistible, and we all know too well that this is far from what we receive in the bag. However, every employee at one point or another has tried to replicate the image on the menu perfectly. But this takes precision and time, so we can only do it if it's really quiet. And most of the time, we fail.

I'll never forget the first time I saw a Wendy's. I'd just moved to California, and my dad pointed out the famous sign as we drove to our new apartment. We went to Wendy's for breakfast the next morning, and my mind was blown. I'd never seen a stack of pancakes that big before in my life! Shortly after I started college, I decided to work at the restaurant to fund my studies. Within days, that glorious childhood memory was in tatters. As soon as I realized how the food was really cooked, I couldn't bring myself to eat a bite - despite having an employee discount.

Now I've been free from Wendy's for a few years, I've decided it's time to spill the beans on one of America's best-loved fast-food giants. It's not all bad though. If you're willing to look past what I tell you about how the food's made, then you can discover how to get the most out of your Wendy's trip... But the worst thing about working at Wendy's was the customers. Amazingly, some people expect a five-star culinary service when visiting a fast food restaurant! That, coupled with the horrors I've mentioned, wasn't worth the low wage. I've got no idea how I managed to stick it out for three years...

[post_page_title]What You Should Never Order[/post_page_title]

I used to love Wendy's chili until I discovered what it was made from. Whenever we eat meat, we live in the hope that it's freshly cooked. However, what you're eating at Wendy's isn't what it appears to be. This is the one item on the menu I wouldn't eat even if you paid me...

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The chili served at Wendy's isn't made from freshly cooked mincemeat. It's actually old hamburgers from the day before that were burnt on the grill. The burgers are binned, chopped up, and turned into chili. I'm not sure what the implications of this area from a health and safety standpoint, but it certainly isn't appetizing...

[post_page_title]There's Something Else Wrong With The Chili[/post_page_title]

If the fact that you're eating old, burnt meat isn't enough to put you off of Wendy's chili, then this probably will. I majored in science at college and did a little bit of digging when I saw the exact ingredients list for their chili. What I discovered was truly sickening...

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The moment I discovered what the chili was made from, I realized how sandy it tasted and decided to do some investigating of my own. When I actually checked the ingredients list, I saw that the chili sauce contained silicon dioxide. A food additive that acts as a preservative which is also found in substances like sand. Yuck!

[post_page_title]This Is When You Shouldn't Visit Wendy's[/post_page_title]

Don't get me wrong, the chili is definitely the worst item on the menu, and the fast-food giant does serve some food that I'd say is edible, even if I'd never want to eat it again. However, if you're wanting to increase your chances of having an enjoyable visit to Wendy's, this is when you shouldn't visit...

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Please don't visit Wendy's just before it's due to close. We're trying to clean up the kitchen and looking forward to going home. If you turn up late, it's more than likely you'll get served reheated food. It's honestly the worst time to come in terms of quality. We will serve you whatever is leftover, and it's more than likely that it's been lying around for hours...

[post_page_title]Where You'll Get Served Faster[/post_page_title]

Wendy's might be a fast-food restaurant, but when we're busy it can be difficult to get all of our orders out in a timely fashion. So instead of getting annoyed at your underpaid servers, this is what you should do if you can't stand to wait for your food for longer than a few minutes...

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Drive-thru is a lot faster than coming into the store for food. My friend worked in McDonald's, and he said it's also the case there as well. Our managers tell us to priorities drive-thru orders so you're always guaranteed to get your food a lot quicker if you take your car to Wendy's!

[post_page_title]The Employee Discount[/post_page_title]

Whilst the time that I spent working at Wendy's put me off the restaurant's food for life, if you're a massive fan of the fast-food giant, and aren't going to be swayed in your love of their food, then maybe you should consider becoming an employee because the discount is particularly generous...

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Employees at Wendy's get 50% off the food. So if you aren't put off the food by working there, it's a real bonus. My friend told me that they only get a 25% discount. That's not the only thing that Wendy's has over McDonald's either...

[post_page_title]How Clean The Kitchens Really Are[/post_page_title]

We've all heard the stories about fast food restaurants having disgusting kitchens, and Wendy's has its share of rumors spread about it over the years. However, this picture is an accurate representation of what a Wendy's kitchen really looks like...

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Wendy's kitchens are spotlessly clean. Whilst there's some questionable reheating being done and chopping up of burnt food, you can at least take comfort in the knowledge that it's being prepared in an extremely clean kitchen!

[post_page_title]A Common Customer Mistake[/post_page_title]

It's no secret that Wendy's isn't as popular as McDonald's. However, a lot of customers make a very silly mistake that not only drives their servers insane but will prompt them to mercilessly make fun of you once you've got your food...

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Please don't try to order McDonald's food at Wendy's. We don't serve you McNuggets. Did you get lost when you were deciding what fast food restaurant you wanted to eat at?! A colleague of mine once sneezed in fries and didn't replace them before he served them because the customer had asked if we sold Big Macs...

[post_page_title]How Badly Underpaid Employees Are[/post_page_title]

You might be thinking that the employees at Wendy's should stop complaining and just accept people's confusion between the restaurant and McDonalds, however, when you find out what they're paid, you'll understand why they're so easily annoyed by customers...

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Staff at Wendy's earn a mere $7.25 an hour. Whereas in other fast-food chains people are paid a lot more. McDonald's pays its cashiers $10 an hour. I stayed in the job so long because I made friends at my store (on reflection, even that wasn't worth it), but there's no doubt I was underpaid...

[post_page_title]Employees Steal Food[/post_page_title]

Not everyone who works in Wendy's is a college student. For most of the employees, the fast-food chain is their career, and, when you're busting your gut for hardly any cash, there's one thing that you won't feel any guilt about doing...

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Wendy's employees happily steal food from the restaurant. You might think they're wrong, but when you're horribly underpaid and have an overbearing manager breathing down your neck your entire shift, you can see why employees would engage in this little act of rebellion...

[post_page_title]There's A Drug Problem[/post_page_title]

This isn't something that I did whilst I worked in Wendy's, but I knew a lot of employees who were happy to do it. I didn't judge them because I knew how stressed out they were working for the fast-food giant, but this illegal substance has been known to end up in the food...

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A lot of employees at Wendy's can't get through their shift without smoking weed. It's so bad that a customer once complained to the restaurant after their young kid found marijuana in their fries. The managers know that their employees are high too, but turn a blind eye to it!

[post_page_title]How Fresh The Fries Really Are[/post_page_title]

We all know what it's like to buy some fries and think that they taste funny. Until I worked in Wendy's, I brushed it off and told myself that it was a figment of my overactive imagination. Then I found out how fresh the fries the restaurant sells really are...

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"It's not old until it's sold." That's the catchphrase my manager used when talking about the fries we were selling. We'd never throw away fries, no matter how long they'd been simmering in the pan for. People often ate fries that had been in there for hours if they came into the store later in the day...

[post_page_title]The Maggots[/post_page_title]

This is easily one of the worst things that I ever saw when I worked at the restaurant. Remember I said that the chili was made from old burgers? Well, sometimes the burgers were really old - anything up to a week. Because of this, there have been some disturbing discoveries in the chili...

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Yeah, don't worry. I wasn't going to subject you to that. Occasionally, people end up unknowingly eating chili with maggots in it. It's one of the reasons why you couldn't pay me to eat the chili from Wendy's. Burgers that have been cooked and kept to chop up at a later date are a prime target for flies...

[post_page_title]Employee Games[/post_page_title]

When you work in a highly pressurized environment like Wendy's - with managers constantly telling you to work harder and customers complaining every five minutes - you have to do something to keep yourself going. So the employees have invented a number of hilarious games...

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When I worked at Wendy's, my colleagues and I would regularly have water fights when our manager's back was turned. Some employees like to have deep-frying competitions where they'd bring in all sorts of foods just to see what they'd taste like after they'd been deep-fried. I once ate a deep-fried Hershey's bar!

[post_page_title]The Meat Is Frozen[/post_page_title]

You might think that when you order a burger from a fast-food chain that you're eating meat that's fresh, however, you couldn't be further from the truth. The reality of how fast-food restaurants keep their meat is disgusting...

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All of the meat that's sold in Wendy's stores is frozen, not fresh. It's frozen so that it can be stored for longer, which make sense for the restaurant chain, but no sense when it comes to providing its customers with a supposedly delicious meal...

[post_page_title]The Secret Menu[/post_page_title]

Just like a lot of other fast-food restaurants, there's a secret menu at Wendy's too. It contains some really impressive things if you're looking to have a heart attack at an early age. This was a particularly popular item on the secret menu...

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The burger pictured above is known as the meat cube, and it's easy to see why. There were a lot of items on the secret menu that we used to cook for regular customers we liked. This included the barnyard burger (which is massive) and the quadruple baconator...

[post_page_title]One Of The Largest Orders[/post_page_title]

When you're rushed off your feet in a fast-food restaurant, there's nothing worse than a customer coming in and making a particularly large and elaborate order. But it happens all of the time. However, this was the worst that I ever received...

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Someone came into my busy store and ordered 25 packs of eight-piece chicken nuggets, eight berry almond salads (full-sized), four apple-pecan salads (half-sized), and over 30 boxes of large fries. I almost died on the spot. What's worse is that she complained about how long it took for me to make this monster order. Please don't be like this woman in Wendy's - especially if it's busy!

[post_page_title]The Cheese Is Left Lying Around[/post_page_title]

Unlike the burgers, the cheese in Wendy's isn't frozen. That might sound like an improvement, but when you find out what happens to it after it's been cooked, you'll be wishing you'd ordered a burger without any cheese...

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Because the cheese isn't frozen, it's often left lying around for a long time before it's cooked. You can only imagine what that does to the cheese in a hot kitchen. Us employees used to refer to it as being "tampered cheese"...

[post_page_title]The Cheap Chicken[/post_page_title]

If you go to Wendy's, and you're in the mood for some chicken, order one of the more expensive items on the menu like the chicken sandwich. Then you'll get what you're paying for. Otherwise, the "chicken" that you're eating won't be what you think it is...

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The chicken in Wendy's is mechanically separated. So that big lump of pink goo is exactly what it looks like before it's molded into whatever cheap fast food item you desire. Sometimes you really do get what you pay for...

[post_page_title]If You Look Like This, You'll Get Extra Food[/post_page_title]

One of the few perks of the job is that us Wendy's employees can subtly flirt with hot customers. How? Well, when you're a server in a fast-food restaurant there's only one way that you can flirt with someone that you think is cute...

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We'll give you extra food if we think you're cute. So if you notice some extra nuggets in your box, or a large fries when you've only ordered a medium, then you might want to ask for you Wendy's server's number. It's a sure sign that they've got the hots for you!

[post_page_title]Employee Hygiene[/post_page_title]

Even though Wendy's managers can be overbearing, the only thing they really care about is making sure that customers get served quickly. Whilst the kitchen itself is spotless, the personal hygiene of some of the people I worked with was extremely questionable...

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A lot of servers in Wendy's don't wash their hands anywhere near as often as they should. I once worked with a guy who bragged about the fact that he never washed his hands and got away with it. Now you can really understand why my opinion of the restaurant I'd loved as a kid changed so rapidly when I worked there!

[post_page_title]Medium Is A Large[/post_page_title]

Sometimes, when you rock up to a Wendy's, or any fast-food giant for that matter, and you're offered the chance to upgrade from a medium to the large soda, the answer is an immediate yes - if you're thirsty enough. But you could be wasting your money.

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Yup. In a lot of fast food franchises, they can get away with charging more for a medium drink if it's got more ounces in it. So it's typically the size of what would otherwise be a standard large, according to research conducted by Duke University. The more you know, eh?

[post_page_title]Your Soda Could Be Dirtier Than A Toilet[/post_page_title]

On the subject of soda, there are also some seriously questionable hygiene practices going on at fast-food giants, and I'm not just talking about Wendy's.

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This is because, as any former employee will attest, cleaning ice machines can be nigh on impossible at times. Unbelievably, a 12-year-old investigated it as part of an award-winning science project and discovered the water is 70% dirtier than toilet water. So you might want to give that soda a miss...

[post_page_title]The Coffee Cups Could Be Making You Sad[/post_page_title]

It's no secret that the styrofoam cups used by most fast-food chains including Wendy's are bad for the environment, but a lesser-known fact is that they're also bad for your health. Seriously.

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This is because they can secrete a substance called styrene. It's toxic and it's known to cause depression and a loss of concentration. However, it's worth noting that it's more likely to be secreted by the cups when they contain highly acidic substances like coffee.

[post_page_title]What The Nuggets Go Through[/post_page_title]

Nuggets are a staple of just about every self-respecting fast-food giant, even if McDonald's is their most famous creator. And because they're cheap, they all tend to be produced in the same problematic way: with mechanically separated meat.

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Reddit user DFunkatron, who claims to be a former McDonald's employee, wrote: " […] I accidentally left a whole bag of about 100 chicken nuggets out on a counter for way too long. They melted. Into a pool of liquid. I never understood why. But they were completely indiscernible as being the nuggets I once knew."

[post_page_title]Your Food Is Surprisingly Old[/post_page_title]

Sure, fast food isn't the healthiest grub on the planet, that's no secret, but one thing which most burger-loving patrons don't know is that it's also surprisingly old.

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Well, depending on where you're eating. This was something brought to light by photographer Sally Davies, who places fast food in jars to see how quickly it deteriorates. When she did it with food from McDonald's, it still looked edible five months later... That's a lot of preservatives.

You probably hit up the Golden Arches a few times a week without giving a single thought to the workers who serve you. After reading this you probably should. McDonald's crew members have a few horror stories to share.

Sometimes, customers can be pretty mean. Other times, things just get weird. Business Insider spoke with several current and former crew members and heard some of their worst, grossest, and strangest stories about working at the fast-food giant.

1. Emergency Walmart runs

McDonald's and Coca-Cola are quite a pair. McDonald's is the brand's biggest restaurant customer, according to The New York Times, and customers expect to be able to order a soda with their McDonald's meal - so issues with a McDonald's soda machine are a big deal.

One McDonald's crew member said how their restaurant dealt with a broken soda dispenser. "I had to drive to Walmart at 4 am to buy 30 two-liter bottles of soda until we could fix the issue," the crew member said.

2. Barking, disruptive dogs

One McDonald's crew member of seven years complained about encountering customers who bring in "annoying" dogs that "bark in my ear when I'm trying to take your order".

3. Customers keeping money in their bras

A crew member from Pennsylvania said that they hated to see "people that take money out their bras". They added that they didn't want to have to touch "bra money." "I don't want to touch what was just touching your flesh," the crew member said.

4. Oatmeal gets thrown more often than you think

Ornery fast-food customers are nothing new. But one crew member told Business Insider about an encounter with one particularly aggressive customer at the drive-thru. "One time, a woman threw her oatmeal at me through the drive-thru window because I was trying to make sure that I heard her coffee order correctly," a crew member of two years told Business Insider.

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5. Ketchup is taken very seriously

"I've had people throw a fit when I didn't give them ketchup by default - the customer is supposed to ask for it - or when I didn't give all of the extra sauces they want without charging them," a former crew member based in New York said.

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6. Food is left in restrooms

"I have seen a half-eaten fudge sundae in the women's bathroom," a crew member said. "It was sitting on the toilet, and it was completely melted. I don't know what was wrong with whoever left it there, but to this day I still find it depressingly comical."

An Illinois-based crew member also added that they had found enough food in their restaurant's men's bathroom to "feed a household".

7. Families with vomiting kids are the worst 

"A small family was on their way out when their 6-year-old son threw up right in front me," a former crew member from Virginia said. "This child clearly did not chew one piece of food from his Happy Meal and swallowed everything whole." The former crew member said the family "just kept walking" and didn't bother to apologize, clean up the mess, or check to see whether the child was okay.

"He stormed back into the restaurant, accused me of poisoning the boy, and told me, 'Clean up that s---, it's disgusting,' as if it were my puke. He also failed to inform me that his grandson had also thrown up in the play area. I got a very angry complaint from someone about that."

These are pretty crazy, but the chances of seeing any of this or it happening to you are probably slim. Now you know the truth, will you live in ignorance and still go, or find your fried solace elsewhere?

No judgement here, either way.

I don't know about you, but I think that without McDonald's, the world would be a much sadder, darker and scarier place. Since the first day I was able to chew solid food to the present day, so many of my best memories have been enjoyed while tucking into a Big Mac, or gobbling down an obscene number of chicken nuggets.

I'm sure you have some similar experiences, but what's it like to be on the other side of the counter? Your average McDonald's employee has seen behind the curtain, and they know better than most about the food you're stuffing into your face. So to that end, wouldn't it be interesting to see what foods McDonald's employees definitely wouldn't eat.

1. This one's a little fishy

While the Big Mac, the McChicken or the Egg McMuffin regularly top the lists of best McDonald's menu items across the world, I have a distinct love for the Filet O'Fish. Fish, cheese, tartare sauce; there's no way this sandwich should work, so I understand why some people don't particularly like it. One former McDonald's employee from Virginia said that while they didn't like the taste, the meal was popular with the older customers "because [they] assume it's easy for them to chew". I'm trying really hard not to take offence at that.

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2. Some of the healthier options

While grabbing a salad at McDonald's is a pretty effective way of relieving yourself of the guilt that can come with gorging on fast food. But one McDonald's employee from Minnesota revealed that they were staying well away from the salads. I kind of get where they're coming from, too: "I'm not a fan of tons of vegetables, and the caloric count in the items is astronomical." For reference, a Big Mac sandwich clocks in at 540 calories, but a Southwest buttermilk crispy chicken salad comes in at 520 calories. The bacon ranch salad with buttermilk crispy chicken has 490 calories, while the bacon ranch grilled chicken salad is 320 calories. That's a lot of calories for a salad.

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3. Is there such a thing as too sweet? In a word, yes

When you're done with that Big Mac and fries and sitting in post-fast food bliss, the only thing that you need is a nice big gulp of Coke to wash it all down with. The Coke we know and love at McDonald's is prepared specially for maximum enjoyment, but one former employee explained how much sugar was in the McDonald's sweet tea. Too much, is the answer. "Pound. Of. Sugar. Per gallon," they revealed, and I'm probably going to steer clear if that's true.

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4. Any of the limited-time-only items

Once in a blue moon (or periodically throughout the year), McDonald's graces us with limited edition menu items that have to be seen to be believed. The McRib, the Shamrock Shake; there's something about limited edition food that makes it taste all the better. But one McDonald's employee revealed on Reddit that having made a McRib themselves, they definitely wouldn't consider putting one in their mouth. "The way it looks before we put the sauce on it is absolutely revolting," this mystery employee explained. "It doesn't look like meat at all, it looks like a scab." Lovely.

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5. The 'healthy' chicken sandwich

Compared to the pork, beef or bacon available underneath your local Golden Arches, chicken is (supposedly) seen as the healthier option. But another Reddit user spoke about why that isn't necessarily true. "A lot of people choose to be healthy and order our grilled chicken," they said in a 2013 thread. "Not a lot of people realize that they're eating at a fast food joint and we will find a way to make anything unhealthy." They then went on to say that the grilled chicken was slathered in margarine, making it a lot less healthy than it looked. The chicken did undergo a revamp in 2015, with the recipe now containing olive oil, canola oil, and herbs. So maybe this employee needs to reconsider his opinion.

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6. One of the newer breakfast items

As any McDonald's lover worth their salt knows, the breakfast menu at McDonald's is a whole other experience entirely to their standard fare, and one worth trying at least once in your life. A relatively new addition to that breakfast menu is the Egg White Delight McMuffin, which first made its way into our mouths and hearts in 2013. With there being only egg whites involved in this particular breakfast sandwich, you could be forgiven for assuming it was healthier than the regular Egg McMuffin. If you did assume that, however, the yolk's on you: "The egg white delight is just as unhealthy, if not more so, than the regular round eggs." On a Reddit thread back in 2014, one user revealed: "The amount of butter — at least in my store — sprayed on the grill must up the calorie and fat count like crazy."

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So... there you have it, McDonald's lovers. It's kind of weird to think about life on the other side of the McDonald's counter, so it's pretty cool to see what they think of the food there. Regardless of whether or not you agree with their opinions (I certainly don't), it's still interesting to see how other people think.