In most offices there is a distinct lack of kitchen etiquette: people leaving dirty dishes in the sink or crumbs/leftover food all over the kitchen counters. Many office workers either forget or ignore the rulers of the office kitchen even though most of the rules simply stem from common sense and consideration for others.
When using the office kitchen there are simple and seemingly obvious general rules that should be followed.
One of the most widely abused and ignored rule of kitchen etiquette is to make a new pot of coffee or tea if you are the one who is emptying or nearly emptying the pot. There’s not much worse than going to the coffee pot and there only being a minute amount of liquid in it when you know that someone else has just used it. If something annoys you, it probably annoys other people too.
Clean up after yourself after making food or a drink, even if you office employs a cleaner. Other people will need to prepare food or snack in the kitchen too and no one wants to do this is a dirty environment. Don’t leave behind remnants of your preparation such as crumbs, spilled drinks and wrappers. It is a simple thing to do to throw rubbish away and give the counter a quick wipe and if you don’t you won’t be very popular with the other employees.
Most workplaces provide microwaves for employee use and these have revolutionised the way that workers can eat on the job, allowing you to warm up leftovers, frozen dinners and other food while at work. However, you must ensure that you have good microwave manners; here are five top things to remember when using the office microwave:
1. Be considerate of your neighbours in the office – don’t microwave smelly food such as fish or heavily spiced cuisine.
2. Clean the microwave after use. If your food has made a mess in the microwave wipe it down with a cloth.
3. Don’t try and jump the queue. The other people waiting by the microwave are hungry too and if the line looks too long for you to wait for then find an alternative way of preparing your food.
4. Don’t leave the microwave broken. If your food is still not hot after use, let someone know that the oven is broken so that they can fix it, don’t just go out to lunch.
5. If you change the settings on the microwave, reset them so the next person to use it doesn’t have to.
In conclusion: have consideration and respect for others when using the office kitchen.