Handwashing in Restaurants: The Right Steps and When to Wash

1. Why Is Handwashing in Restaurants the First Line of Defense?

Handwashing in restaurants is the simplest and most effective practice for preventing microbes from reaching food. It means washing hands under running water with soap, scrubbing thoroughly for at least 20 seconds, then drying with a paper towel, at set times throughout the shift. Hands touch everything in the kitchen: raw meat, surfaces, phones, cash and then ready-to-eat food, which makes them the fastest carrier of contamination.

Many food poisoning cases are linked to hands that were not washed properly after using the toilet or after handling raw food. The problem is that this contamination is invisible: a hand can look perfectly clean while carrying enough to make several customers ill.

In food establishments across Saudi Arabia, hand sinks and the availability of soap and paper towels are items the municipal inspector notices immediately, along with whether workers actually wash their hands while working. Building a handwashing culture is therefore not just a health recommendation but a core part of complying with municipal requirements and food safety standards.

In this guide we explain the correct steps, the mandatory moments, sink specifications, common mistakes and how to follow up daily.

2. What Are the Correct Handwashing Steps for Kitchen Staff?

A quick rinse under the tap for a few seconds does not remove microbes. The correct method we train kitchen teams on consists of clear steps:

• Wet your hands: Under running water up to the wrists; warm water is more comfortable and encourages longer washing.
• Apply soap: Enough liquid soap to cover the hands completely.
• Rub palms together: Then the back of each hand with the palm of the other, with fingers interlaced.
• Clean between the fingers: By interlacing them front and back.
• Scrub the thumbs: By rotating each thumb inside the clasped fist of the other hand.
• Clean fingertips and nails: By rubbing them in a circular motion against the opposite palm.
• Scrub the wrists: They frequently touch food and surfaces.
• Rinse well: Under running water with fingers pointing down.
• Dry with a paper towel: Used once only.
• Turn off the tap with the towel: If the tap is not foot-, elbow- or sensor-operated.

The scrubbing alone should last at least 20 seconds. A trick some restaurants use is to hang an illustrated poster of the steps above every sink, which helps a multilingual workforce follow exactly the same steps.

Train every new employee on these steps hands-on on their first day, then observe their handwashing once or twice during the first week.

3. When Should Hands Be Washed During a Shift?

Knowing how to wash is not enough if a worker forgets when to wash. These are the key moments every kitchen or front-of-house worker should memorize:

• When entering the food preparation area at the start of the shift or after a break.
• After using the toilet; ideally wash twice: at the restroom sink and again on returning to the kitchen.
• After touching raw meat, poultry, fish or eggs.
• Before handling ready-to-eat foods such as salads, desserts and sandwiches.
• After coughing, sneezing or touching the nose, hair or face.
• After taking out the trash, cleaning floors or using cleaning agents.
• After touching a phone, cash or the POS terminal.
• After receiving goods and opening cartons.
• Before putting on gloves and every time they are changed.
• After eating, drinking or smoking.

In busy restaurants, workers may feel that frequent washing slows them down. The solution is to place sinks close to workflow routes, not in a distant corner. When the sink is a few steps away, compliance becomes much easier. For the bigger picture, see our guide to personal hygiene for food handlers.

4. What Are the Specifications of a Hand Sink in a Commercial Kitchen?

A good hand sink makes compliance easy; a poor one makes it almost impossible. When fitting out a new kitchen or reviewing an existing one, check these points:

• A sink dedicated to hands only: Not used for washing dishes or vegetables or pouring liquids.
• A nearby location: At the entrance to the preparation area and close to the main workstations, as well as inside or next to the restrooms.
• Hot and cold running water: With a mixer that allows a comfortable temperature.
• A hands-free tap: Operated by foot, knee, elbow or sensor, according to the applicable requirements.
• Liquid soap in a dispenser: Not a shared bar of soap.
• Paper towels in a dispenser: With a nearby trash bin, preferably foot-operated.
• An instruction poster: Showing the washing steps with pictures.
• Easy access: No boxes or equipment piled in front of it.

Common findings during visits include a sink that exists but is blocked by items, an empty soap dispenser, or the sink being used to wash kitchen utensils. These small details are immediately visible to the inspector and reflect the standard of daily management. Make checking sinks and refilling soap and towels part of your restaurant kitchen cleaning schedule.

5. Can Hand Sanitizer Replace Soap and Water in a Restaurant?

Alcohol-based hand sanitizer is useful in some situations, but it is not a substitute for washing hands with soap and water in the kitchen. Sanitizer does not remove dirt, grease and food residue from the hands, and its effectiveness drops sharply when hands are dirty or greasy, which is the state of kitchen workers' hands most of the time. Some microbes are also not affected by alcohol-based sanitizers to the same degree.

The practical rule is therefore:

• Always the foundation: Soap, water, scrubbing and drying with a paper towel.
• Sanitizer as an extra step: It can be used after washing and drying in establishments that build it into their system, such as food factories or packing areas.
• For the dining area and cashier: Sanitizer can be a helpful aid between transactions, but hands must still be washed with soap and water before touching any exposed food.

If you adopt a sanitizer, choose a product suitable for food establishments, keep it away from food and follow the manufacturer's instructions. Don't let sanitizer become an excuse to skip the sink; inspectors notice this habit, and it weakens the team's hygiene culture.

Finally, remember that sanitizer must not be used on gloved hands instead of changing gloves: a dirty glove is removed and thrown away, the hands are washed, and a new glove is put on.

6. What Are the Most Common Handwashing Mistakes Among Staff?

During field visits to restaurants and cafés, the same handwashing mistakes come up again and again, and knowing them helps the supervisor correct them early:

• Rushed washing: A few seconds of rinsing without soap or without enough scrubbing.
• Neglecting nails, thumbs and between the fingers: The areas where contamination most often remains.
• Drying on the apron or a cloth towel: Which immediately recontaminates the hands.
• Turning off the tap with a clean hand: At manually operated sinks.
• Washing hands in the dishwashing sink: Instead of the dedicated hand sink.
• Relying on gloves: And not washing hands before putting them on or when changing them.
• Wearing rings and watches: Which prevent soap from reaching the skin beneath them.
• Forgetting to wash after using the phone: The most widespread mistake in modern kitchens.

Rather than raising the issue in general terms at meetings, it is better for the supervisor to correct the mistake gently in the moment, then have the worker rewash correctly. Hands-on training at the sink is more effective than any lecture. You can also set aside one minute in a weekly pre-shift meeting to remind the team of a single step, such as cleaning the nails, so the habit builds gradually.

7. How Do You Monitor Team Handwashing Compliance Every Day?

Monitoring doesn't mean standing behind workers for the whole shift; it means building a simple system that makes compliance the norm. These are practical steps we recommend:

• Check the sinks at least twice per shift: Are soap, paper towels and hot water available? Is the sink accessible and unobstructed?
• Short random observations: The supervisor watches several required handwashing moments, such as returning from a break or after handling raw food, and records what they see.
• Immediate, documented correction: When a lapse is spotted, the wash is repeated and the action is recorded without public blame.
• Weekly review: To spot patterns, such as soap running out on the night shift or repeated findings at a particular station.
• Link it to evaluation: Hygiene compliance can be one of the performance criteria for both workers and supervisors.

Regular records give you evidence of compliance in front of the inspector and help you improve the spots where problems recur. To learn how the inspector assesses these items during a full visit, browse our inspection preparation articles.

When a finding keeps recurring in one place, ask why before assigning blame: Is the sink too far away? Does the soap run out at peak time? The solution often lies in the environment, not just the worker.

Conclusion

Handwashing in restaurants works when three elements come together: a correct method with at least 20 seconds of scrubbing, clear moments every worker knows by heart, and well-equipped sinks close to workflow routes. Add to this simple daily follow-up on soap and paper towel availability, and short observations in which the supervisor corrects mistakes on the spot. When you document these rounds in a digital checklist in LAEQ365, the task is assigned to the supervisor every shift and the results are saved, turning the habit into a consistent system whose impact shows in any inspection visit.

Frequently asked questions

How long should handwashing take in a restaurant?

Scrubbing hands with soap should last at least 20 seconds, covering the palms, the backs of the hands, between the fingers, the thumbs, the fingertips and nails, and the wrists, followed by rinsing under running water and drying with a single-use paper towel. The whole process usually takes between 40 seconds and a minute, a short time compared with its impact in preventing contamination.

Can hands be washed in the dishwashing sink?

This is not recommended. Commercial kitchens need a sink dedicated to handwashing only, separate from dishwashing and vegetable-washing sinks. Washing hands in the dish sink can transfer contamination to clean utensils, and having a dedicated sink that workers actually use is one of the items the inspector checks under the applicable municipal requirements.

Does the water have to be hot for handwashing?

The most important factors in handwashing are soap, thorough scrubbing and its duration, not water temperature alone. However, comfortably warm water encourages workers to wash for longer and helps remove grease. That is why kitchens are usually required to provide hot and cold water at hand sinks, and the water should never be hot enough to hurt the skin.

What is the best way to dry hands in the kitchen?

The best way is single-use paper towels thrown into a nearby bin, because they remove remaining moisture and help remove some additional microbes. Using the apron or a shared cloth towel to dry hands is not allowed, as they quickly become contaminated and transfer contamination back to the hands. The same paper towel can be used to turn off the tap.

Is antibacterial soap necessary in restaurants?

Regular liquid soap with thorough scrubbing for long enough removes most microbes from the hands, because it is the scrubbing and rinsing that remove dirt, grease and the microbes with them. Some establishments choose antibacterial soap as part of their system, which is an acceptable option, but what matters most is following the steps and moments and keeping soap constantly available in a closed dispenser.