An insider's guide to five sneaky restaurant cheats

Editor's Note: This is a new column on the restaurant industry by David Bakke, who is a columnist with MoneyCrashers.com.

So, will cooks really spit in your food if you send it back to the kitchen? Have servers ever dropped a little liquid ex-lax in the drink of a not-so-friendly customer? Are you constantly worried about whether you are following the tipping etiquette guidelines because you think things like this might happen to you?

I worked in the restaurant industry for a long time and have an insider's knowledge about what really goes on behind the scenes. While I've never witnessed anything extreme, the typical restaurant kitchen is very high-paced with a lot of pressure and stress. These conditions can lead to the staff to take a shortcut or two along the way.

Here is a list of some of the cheats and tricks I've seen happen in restaurants that you may (or may not) want to know about: