A nauseating video appears to show a McDonald's worker using the fryer while one hand is down her trousers – then using the same hand to serve up a portion of fries.
In the clip, shared on TikTok by user @itskelseylol, a man is standing at the service counter filming a blonde Maccies worker who has apparently stuck her hand down the back of trousers.
He says: "Er, excuse me, ma'am, can I get my large fries?"
The McDonald's worker then mumbles something inaudible and pulls her left hand out of her waistband while serving up the portion of fries into a box.
She then passes the customer his food order, seeming oblivious to his reaction.
McDonald's USA told The Sun the video had "resurfaced from years ago" and the employee in the clip "has not worked for the restaurant since 2016".
The video has been watched more than 2.4 million times since Kelsey uploaded it on December 16, with many customers appalled by the unhygienic-looking stunt.
One wrote: "OK I'm starting not to trust fast-food restaurants."
Someone else said: "Omg. I don't think I want to go to McDonald's anymore."
The TikTok user responded to the backlash in the comments, saying the gross actions were part of a planned prank and the kitchen was closed and about to get cleaned.
She wrote: "This video was taken in 2016 AS A JOKE!
"We just closed everything for the night and had to take everything apart to clean it. IT’S A JOKE!"
Many viewers were still not impressed with the icky performance.
One person commented: "Scripted or not her hands still been down her trousers then in the fries, even if it's a joke, that's still a working kitchen regardless."
A second blasted: "Even if it was made as a joke it makes McDonald's look bad, it makes people think what kind of employees are being hired there."