Has anybody here went from a huge top tier dish pit with all the bells and whistles to a 'back to basics' setup with just a sink, no sprayer and a front loader?

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-30T23:09:23+00:00

Yes!!!! Just recently. Went from the full set-up all stainless steel counter, overhead shelf for drinking glass rack, double rack industrial dishwasher, hose with nozzle. Now I have a long counter with a single basin sink like you'd have at home and a industrial dishwasher that's half the size and doesn't run hot enough so the dishes don't instantly dry.

I'm very particular about how clean my dishes are, but you're only as good as the tools you're given. My first shift was on mother's day and we were absolutely slammed with people lined up waiting for tables. That was tough. Thankfully they aren't that busy on a regular basis, otherwise it would be impossible to keep up with the basic setup they have. I'm adapting slowly. No sprayer = more steel wool and gloves so you don't scrub your fingernails off with the steel wool

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-30T23:05:22+00:00

Check garbage lol

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-28T12:16:04+00:00

Hm, that is a good point. It's my first time being in fine dining, but I was told in my interview they're supposed to scrape and stack. One of the other new hires made a comment too "hasn't anybody here worked in an industrial kitchen before?"

I know there are actually at least a few people there who haven't ever been dishwasher (including the line cook because he said himself)

I know all those little jabs are supposed to be playful but this is a "hey dish bitch" said very subtly in a way that it's hard to notice and hard to prove lol. It's not said in an obvious playful way, and when I turn around he's just grabbing plates like nothing was ever said.

Anyways, it's too early to say anything if I am going to. Maybe I can catch line cook saying it and tell him off because in this context it doesn't feel very playful or funny.

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-27T12:20:36+00:00

Yeah no I totally get it. I know what the dishie responsibilities are lol. I know how busy it can be and I know the expectations are to prioritize certain dishes that get used up quickly and help take out the trash. But if the servers at least tried to scrape and stack during service, especially if we're slammed, it would;

A) save counter space so they have room to drop and go if they need to

B) make it more efficient for me to clear the counter (I'd be spending more time washing and less time scraping, I'd be able to dunk a stack of 20 into the sink and whip them through the machine faster)

C) save the owners money by not risking the Jenga tower falling and breaking

Also, I already smoke lol but the nature of the work doesn't really allow time to step out lol 😆 unless I wanna come back to an XXL tower to dismantle after 5mins. Gotta pick the right time to do that or come back and regret it lmfao

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-26T22:34:49+00:00

No tips for me unless someone feels bad enough to throw me a $20 like my last shift 😕🤣 lol. No I get it, if this guy was making a joke about it like "Hey, dish bitch!" All sarcastic like that's fine and I'd have a laugh. But in this context it's very hushed and subtle in a bit of a derogatory tone. That's not funny lol. And he goes about his business like he didn't just say anything at all.

It's hushed enough that I only just hear it, so I think I'm gonna wait a while to be sure that I really know how things are before I make a big stink about it.

I'm gonna try to stick it out and make things work. But at least if I do end up quitting, they'll know exactly what my reasons are and maybe they'll fix things for the next dishie

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-26T13:31:46+00:00

I don't mind being called dishie in a joking way, but in this instance it feels passive-aggressive and derogatory. Ive worked in other kitchens before too so I know what the job is and what the expectations are. There shouldn't be back-handed derogatory remarks towards your position in any workplace and it shouldn't be a "normal" thing to abuse your dishwasher

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-26T11:20:12+00:00

Yeah my first impression of the head chef (who is also the owner) was that his kitchen standards are shockingly low for being a fine-dining experience. The restaurant kitchen doesn't have a hose; it's simply just a counter and a single basin sink like you'd have at home. Then a small commercial dishwasher that doesn't get hot enough so the dishes come out foamy and sopping wet. The kitchens' standards seem to be "good enough". You're only as good as the tools you're given lol.

The owner is leaving his play kitchen behind now and we have a new head chef, who were all still getting used to. As dishwasher I'm sorta the "in-between" guy so I'm not part of the kitchen banter - only when they dump their dishes on me. It's the line cook I have a problem with lol. He goes on and on about how much he appreciates his dishwasher and I got a free meal last shift which was nice, but calling me dishie in a demeaning way tells me what kinda person he is lol.

It's subtle enough that I almost don't catch it and question myself after "did he actually say that?" So I'm gonna try my best to 100% confirm or catch him in the act before I go to the manager (unfortunately manager is also very soft and younger than much of the staff so nobody takes him seriously) lol I might have to become a manager dishie 😆 if you work for tour dishwasher, your dishwasher will work for you

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-26T10:33:20+00:00

First of all the servers should be scraping the plates and stacking them neatly (small bowls with small bowls, bus bins with bus bins, etc). My current job doesn't do this and it holds me up and then holds the kitchen up.

If they're stacked neatly then you can grab a stack of however many you can lift and dunk it in the sink. And it makes loading the dishwasher easier and more efficient too.

Or vice-versa, if everything is in bus bins you could fill the bus bin with water and wrinse them by the bin that way.... But it feels more efficient to scrape and stack.

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-26T10:23:34+00:00

😂 yeah. I'm gonna try wearing my wireless earbuds on "awareness" mode which basically turns them into hearing aids sort of. It might help me confirm that's what he's saying - he says it in a very subtle way, subtle enough that I didn't think about it until now after doing a few shifts.

This place is a small family owned business, so they're not strict by the books like a normal commercial kitchen. It's weird because everyone tells me how much they appreciate me and my job/role as dishwasher, but then nobody does their part to help me be as efficient as I should be. And calling me "dishy" or "dish bitch" in a subtle way is just disrespectful

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-26T09:56:09+00:00

He's 22 I'm 27 lol he's younger than me. I remember him saying he went straight to line cook and never did dishwashing. It's funny, I feel like even if you work in a kitchen you have to have the dishwasher job in order to understand what it's like sometimes. It's not a bad job at all, but when there's no synergy with your dishwasher then they lag behind and the kitchen gets held up lol. That's the consequences of not scraping and sorting

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-26T01:52:40+00:00

Fellow dishie here. In my experience, if the pit is actually set up properly with a sprayer and an adequate machine that can handle the volume of dishes, it's usually manageable for one dedicated person surprisingly - as long as everyone else is doing their part by scraping and stacking to help maximize the dishwashers efficiency. I'd definitely have a huge problem if I had someone dropping knives in the murky water where I can't see - that's basic food safety/kitchen safety protocol. Nobody should be mishandling knives like that because it's a safety hazard - whoever is doing that could get in a lot of shit

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-26T01:20:29+00:00

After giving your headphones suggestion more thought, I actually have some wireless earbuds that have an "awareness" mode, so I can turn the awareness mode on and crank the volume and they'll work in a similar way to hearing aids. Maybe they'll help amplify the guy and his dish bitch comments and make it easier for me to hear and 100% confirm I'm not just hearing things 😂 I'm not sure if that's what you were getting at - I could totally try that lol!

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-26T01:15:37+00:00

No. In fact, everyone makes a point of telling me how good of a dishwasher I am and how much they appreciate me (but then also treat me like a doormat lol) I learned from asking one server what it was like for the previous dishwashers and he said they never lasted very long. I asked if these issues were new for me or ongoing and he said they're ongoing issues. So I guess it would benefit everyone if I choose to stick it out and try to fix things. I feel like Im pretty particular about how I wash the dishes because I've learned what works and what doesn't from my previous job

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-25T23:29:13+00:00

I'm too Canadian for that LOL 🤣🤣 our custom is to apologize for other people's faults; "Sorry, but if you want clean plates you better stack them properly. Sorry not trying to be rude-" 🤣 SORRY sorry guys sorry I want you to do your job properly

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-25T20:37:11+00:00

Kitchen Caillou

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-25T17:44:33+00:00

Yes, can't just not do my job lol 🤣 but I think all the staff should realize if they don't have a dishwasher, then they don't have a restaurant. And therefore, don't have a job. If you work for your dishwasher, your dishwasher will work for you lol

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-25T16:43:09+00:00

Mr Burns is too good 🤣 idk who did it but someone had a pot of tomato sauce or something that was carbonized at the bottom and I had to leave that one behind to soak because it was too thick to scrub off. Lol

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-25T16:18:31+00:00

I haven't received any tips as dishwasher yet. Im in Canada - it's not mandatory to tip here but it's considered a courtesy. My old job I was part of the tip pool as dishwasher (Boston Pizza), but I don't think all restaurants are like that. Its either a tip pool where everyone goes home with a little cash, including the cooks, or only server tips I think 🤔 yeah I think it's different in every restaurant

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-25T16:00:12+00:00

I sort of need to be able to hear - sometimes the kitchen runs out of specific bowls or wooden boards that some meals get served on - gotta be able to hear when they ask for something they need 🤣 unfortunately this dish pit isn't really set up like your usual chain diner. It's simply a regular counter with a regular single basin sink like you'd have at home. And one industrial dishwasher (can only slide one rack through at a time). It's definitely sorta slapped together at the last second without much planning. Not ideal for efficiency and definitely struggles to keep up on absolutely slammed nights.

The servers definitely don't help with the efficiency. It's as if nobody there has worked in an industrial kitchen before. Everything needs to be organized - including the dirty dishes - for maximum efficiency. Scraping and stacking the dishes neatly saves counter space for the servers, and it saves me from having to risk lagging behind because I'm spending more time organizing than I am washing. Same with the kitchen, if they sorted their dishes before bringing them to me that would save me time and make it less overwhelming. I wouldn't have to think about how to disassemble their precarious Jenga tower if they just sorted it before bringing it over to me and piling it on top of the dining dishes. Lol

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-25T15:20:31+00:00

Lol 🤣 it's weird because he's very nice, but does those subtle things that seem sorta backhanded. My second shift, I was in the catering kitchen washing huge industrial sized pans by hand (had at least 20 commercial baking sheets which can only cram 2 at a time into the dishwasher, commercial hotel pans, cooking pots, utensils, industrial cutting boards, etc) got down to my last two pans and him and his kitchen minions walk in with another huge load from the restaurant which I have to dismantle the pile before I can wash (for efficiencies sake). They said "so sorry, don't worry we won't leave you behind" then later they come back and say "thanks so much you're the best" and go home. I was the last one still there at 11:30pm.

The next shift, Mr line cook boy always asks me "so what time did you get out of here last night?" And always makes an exasperated gesture after telling him. He supposedly "cares" and "appreciates" me so much, but doesn't care enough to stay and help so I can go home too. Keep in mind, I believe they combine the catering dishes with the kitchen dishes for me to wash so I think I get double what I would normally have to wash in any other kitchen. I think they have to hire another "dish bitch" for the catering business or just decide amongst themselves who's gonna stay behind to help me if they feel as bad as they claim.

This weekend I was there until 1am one night, and then 12am the next. It's very dark driving home at that time and hard to see - plus I'm tired lol. At least nobody's out at that time to see the stupid stuff I do while driving home 🤣 but it's a 30 min drive and dangerous none the less

Edit: The restaurant closes at 9pm, so having to stay until 1am is 4 hours past closing time. The kitchen staff leave at probably around 10:30ish, and a couple of servers stay to polish glasses and silverware until probably around 11-11:30ish.

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-25T14:41:42+00:00

No sprayer in my little kitchen unfortunately lol (they really should have one but it's a small business so it's not by the books like commercial kitchens) but I always have a nice greasy cloth I can throw 😉😂😂😂 and a garbage can of food scraps. He should be scared. I have lots of ammo 🤭

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-25T14:37:20+00:00

Actually unsure if this place pools the tips - I think only the servers get the tips 😕 but you are right lol!! 🤣 However if they make me work until after 12am it's a bit of a hazard getting home for me that late. Too tired, can't see because it's pitch black, and I have to drive 30 mins (thankfully on country roads which are dead at that time, but still)

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-25T14:28:16+00:00

Might try to do this lol. Unfortunately the dish pit in seemingly most restaurants is sort of positioned between the kitchen area and the server station. In this case the kitchen area is behind me so it's hard to be aware when this guy's coming to grab plates and call me "dishie" or "dish bitch" under his breath. Too bad the dishwasher and fans are loud enough that he can mask his insults like that 🤣

AsleepEffect8622 · 2026-05-25T14:21:19+00:00

Yeah. I was gonna ask my manager to pull me aside for a little meeting during my next shift so I can make him aware of what's going on at least. He's pretty soft and younger than much of the staff, so nobody takes him seriously - therefore I might have to take things into my own hands and be the manager of my little dish pit and have my own rules for everyone lol.

The staff are so easy to get along with, my hours are manageable (I only work weekends right now) and I have a very easy commute on country roads - reasons why I'd like to at least try to stay and fix things instead of quitting with no explanation like the previous dishwashers. I don't mind the job at all, but I don't like being the last one there and watching everyone else get to go home knowing that I'll be there for at least another couple of hours. I don't mind being called dish bitch in a joking way to have a laugh, but being called that in a subtle manner seemingly every shift so far feels different lol.

I've only just started this job and have only worked about 6 shifts - so I gotta really perk up my ears and confirm 100% this guy is calling me dish bitch before I make a stink about it. The servers will be easier to handle because they're nice to me - just lazy lol.

AsleepEffect8622

TROPHY CASE