TikToker warns customers ordering red drinks at restaurants to look out for ants

A TikToker has gone viral after warning customers who order red drinks at stores to be careful of ants floating around in their drinks.

TikTok has become a place where all sorts of content exist, including money-saving hacks, music trends, cooking tips, and more. Furthermore, the platform also serves as a handy place for workers to share inside tips about products and items.

In a new viral clip, Tiktoker Aubry, who goes by aubrey_tucker_music on the platform, told her viewers to be wary when ordering red-colored drinks from restaurants as there is a “99% chance there are ants in your drink.”

She revealed that if the server does not run the soda fountain for a few seconds before filling their drink, the ants stuck on the residual syrup will likely go straight into their cup or glass.

Anyone who has worked at a fast food chain or restaurant with soft drinks on tap will know just how quickly the syrup attracts ants, bugs, and other pests. Hence, it is so important to constantly clean these nozzles and flush out the syrup.

The video, viewed over 610,000 times, called out servers who do not flush out the nozzles of red-flavored beverages before pouring customer drinks.

“Psa to all servers and people who eat at restaurants… ants love red 40. And big red… has a LOT of red 40 in [there],” the caption reads.

While Aubry’s example drink is Big Red, this applies to all beverages that use the synthetic food dye ingredient Red 40.

Red 40 is found in popular snacks such as Skittles, M&Ms, Doritos, and drinks like Gatorade and Dr Pepper. 

While some claim that Red 40 is harmful to consume, it is one of just nine color additives approved by the Food and Drug Administration in the USA and the European Union.

Following Aubry’s TikTok video, users are now much less excited to order red drinks at stores and are more likely to “pass” on them in the future.