"I Can't Eat in Front of Him": People Share the Dining Habits That Completely Kill Their Appetite and It's So Relatable.

There are many factors that contribute to a great meal, but it only takes one unpleasant moment to spoil everything. Whether it's an unexpected object on your plate or a waiter who just won’t stop interrupting, we all have those meal-ruining annoyances.

Recently, sheerduckinghubris asked Redditors, "What would completely ruin a good meal for you?" The responses were filled with some truly awful experiences, and some of these might just make you lose your appetite too.

1. "Biting into a texture that shouldn't be there."

2. "One Christmas, I was enjoying my stepdad's sister's meatballs, and I bit into one, only to hear a crunch that felt more like a crack. I then pulled out a shard of glass from my mouth. It turned out she had dropped the casserole dish, and the glass lid broke, falling into the meatballs. I wasn't hurt, but it terrified me."

—masterjon_3

3. "The sound of an eggshell crunching in my scrambled eggs."

Would an "unexpected texture" completely ruin your meal?

While it's unfortunate, this wouldn't ruin my meal! I'd keep eating.

While it's unfortunate, this wouldn't spoil my meal! I'd keep eating.

This wouldn't bother me one bit! I'd keep eating.

4. "When food is cold and it's not supposed to be."

Does the temperature of your food matter when it comes to enjoying it?

Yes! I like my hot food to be HOT. The microwave is my go-to.

Flavor is more important to me than temperature. I don’t mind if a meal isn’t steaming when it’s brought to the table.

Hot food is definitely better, but I can manage a lukewarm curry or steak if necessary.

5. "Bad company."

—xxsassytemptress

6. "Eating with someone who chews with their mouth open and makes noise with every bite."

—Koda-Flame

7. "I have a friend who literally sucks on all 10 of his fingers, the whole finger. It's absolutely disgusting. I can't eat around him."

8. "When someone I’m dining with scrapes their teeth against the fork."

Do the people around you ever make you lose your appetite while eating?

For the most part, I can tolerate the behavior of others, no matter what it is.

Yes! "Bad company" will definitely make me lose my appetite.

If someone annoys me while I'm eating, I might get upset, but I won’t stop the meal entirely.

9."Nothing is worse than going to a nice restaurant, paying high prices for a dish that looks amazing but tastes completely bland. It’s insane how many restaurants fail to season their food properly."

Would a beautifully presented dish with a bland taste totally ruin your meal?

Presentation should never outweigh taste, and when you're paying a premium, your food should deliver on flavor.

I may feel a little let down, but it wouldn't spoil the whole meal.

I enjoy aesthetically pleasing food! Even if it lacks flavor, I'm more focused on the overall dining experience at the restaurant.

10. "My sixth-grade science teacher once shared how he was cutting cherry tomatoes, and the first one exploded with baby spiders. I couldn't eat them for years after that."

—btwomfgstfu

"I had to stop eating these tiny grapes after finding multiple web sacs inside one. I opened one, and there was a little spider in it. At first, it seemed dead, but after a few minutes, it started moving, almost like it had been paralyzed by another spider and then woke up. I stopped buying them after that."

—MyDogisaQT

11. "It's not just any bug, but a roach in my food that would make me vomit and go full Karen on management."

12. "This happened at a wedding event I was coordinating. The bride discovered a whole dried grasshopper in her salad. She quietly mentioned it, and we took care of it. Two weeks later, she emailed me saying her grandma was heartbroken because she hadn’t found the grasshopper on the wedding day... apparently, Grandma had kept it in for good luck."

13. "I once found a caterpillar in my salad at a farm-to-table restaurant. When I told the server, he said, 'That’s how you know it’s fresh.' I didn’t laugh and ended up leaving my meal unfinished."

14. "There's nothing worse than realizing halfway through your meal that something is crawling on your plate. That surprise 'protein' can ruin a meal instantly."

—babyyerinae

"It reminds me of the saying: What’s worse than finding a worm in your apple? Finding half a worm."

—Vanishingf0x

Would you continue eating if you discovered 'extra protein' (a bug) in your meal?

If I found a bug in my food, I’d keep eating without a second thought. It’s no big deal! It’s just natural!

It all depends on the bug.

Clear my plate, I’m finished. No chance I’ll stop eating if there’s some 'extra protein' in my food.

15. "Big clump of hair right in the middle of my food."

16. "One day in high school, I grabbed a salad from the cafeteria, ate most of it, and suddenly felt something stuck in my teeth. I pulled and pulled until it scraped my throat. It was a hair, at least 18 inches long. I’m a guy with a buzz cut, so it wasn’t mine. I took it to the cafeteria lady, and she asked, 'Would you like a new salad?' I said, 'No, ma’am, I don’t ever want to eat again, thanks.'"

—needsZAZZ665

Is finding a stray hair in your food a dealbreaker for you?

Just thinking about it gives me the heeby-jeebies.

If it's my hair, I'll get over it. But if it belongs to someone else, I’ll be too disgusted to eat anymore.

You can't catch anything from hair in your food, so I’d just keep eating.

17.
"A surprise clump of dish soap... I mean cilantro."

18.
"Raw onion instantly turns everything into something terrible. But caramelized onions? They make everything delicious."

—Crime_Dawg

19.
"I just can’t wrap my head around how people eat mayo. It’s pure evil."

Are there any ingredients (besides allergies) that would make you skip a meal?

Yes, I’m very selective about food. I’d rather skip a meal than eat something I really dislike.

There are a few foods I prefer to avoid, but I can usually work around them.

I’ll eat pretty much anything that’s edible!

20. "Someone nearby chatting on speakerphone, scrolling TikTok with the volume up, or letting their kids play loud shows/games on an iPad without headphones. In short, any personal device noise when headphones should be used."

21. "I can't stand complete silence. I need some background noise, like the TV, to drown out the sounds of chewing and swallowing."

—madeofhexagons

22. "A woman at the next table with way too much perfume on"

23. "Someone smoking nearby? That completely ruins my meal."

"Someone smoking nearby? Can't stand it. Totally ruins my food experience."

—AccomplishedShoe9810

Can external sounds or smells destroy your meal entirely?

Nope, what matters most is how the food tastes!

Yes, intrusive sounds and smells can make me lose my appetite.

Annoying sounds and smells can impact my meal's experience, but they won't ruin it altogether.