Regular customers say business at restaurants, particularly the affordable ones, has shot up considerably in recent times

A cross-section of residents have complained that a number of eateries in Doha and beyond continue to violate hygiene norms despite efforts to stop such practices.
They have urged the authorities concerned to continue cracking down on such establishments to ensure that food is prepared and served in a clean and safe manner.
Several eateries in the country have been penalised over the past few months, including temporary closure, after visits by municipal inspectors revealed that hygiene standards were not being complied with in such places.
The restaurants and cafes that have faced action include high-profile establishments as well as small and medium neighbourhood joints.
However, despite these measures, practices such as handling food items with bare hands and serving hot beverages like tea and coffee in plastic cups are common in many eateries, the residents point out. Other kinds of “unhygienic and unsafe” practices could be seen as well, they add.
A resident who relies on restaurants for his daily food requirements told Gulf Times that when violations such as improper handling of eatables are brought to the attention of restaurant operators, some of them get angry and rudely ask customers to leave the place and go elsewhere for food.
The customer said he was forced to shout at a person sitting at the counter of an eatery when he saw some employees serving bread with their bare hands. While the restaurant manager apologised for this, some of the workers were seen doing the same thing a week later, he recalled.
Some of the restaurants that face such charges have been fined earlier for similar violations, it is understood. Another resident was of the view that food handlers should be ordered to wear face masks, in addition to gloves and caps.
Regular customers say business at restaurants, particularly the affordable ones, has shot up considerably in recent times as more people come to the country for employment. However, not enough attention is paid to hygiene and safe practices in many of these eateries, they added.