# Would you bring a cup of coffee into the restroom at work? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 7, 2012, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263 "2012-11-07T19:04:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Winston\_Smith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e95f7d/32.png) [@Winston\_Smith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winston_Smith)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/41 "2012-11-07T22:01:47Z")
I was at a Microsoft TechNet thing a few years ago. The format was presentations from 9:30 to 11:30, then an hour break with lunch being served, then another presentation and done. At break-time, one of the attendies loaded up his plate full of sandwiches, potato salad, etc _then_ went into the bathroom, with his plate of food, to pee. He put the plate on top of the urinal while he pissed. I thought I was going to puke. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/42 "2012-11-07T22:32:45Z")
> [@snowthx](#): > > Maybe they are working on something? Or dealing with a pressing matter? Coffee does have that effect on a lot of people. > > No, I would never bring anything that goes into my mouth into the toilet. Why not? You take your actual mouth in there. ---
**Author:** ![Ashes\_Ashes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/db5fbb/32.png) [@Ashes\_Ashes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashes_Ashes)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/43 "2012-11-07T22:37:41Z")
It was a loooong walk to my classroom from anywhere on campus, with the bathroom midway. That meant my soda went with me into the restroom (never the stall). Granted, the shelves weren’t near the stalls. I’d have been grossed out if I had brought it into the stall with me because the only place for it would’ve been the floor. Yuck! ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/44 "2012-11-07T22:39:38Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > Why not? You take your actual mouth in there. Thank you! Unless you’re pursing your mouth shut tight the whole time you’re in the bathroom, I think you’re overreacting a little about having a coffee cup in there. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/45 "2012-11-07T22:41:13Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > Why not? You take your actual mouth in there. My mouth has the option of staying closed. I suppose a covered cup of coffee is about the same, but still, food or drink in the stalls? Really? What if there is no place to put your coffee while you are sitting down - do you just put it on the floor, or on top of the urinal, like Microsoft TechNet guy? ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/46 "2012-11-08T00:40:07Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > [Cecil speaks](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1317/does-flushing-the-toilet-cause-dirty-water-to-be-spewed-around-the-bathroom). GMTA! I just cited that column in the toothbrush thread too! ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/47 "2012-11-08T01:31:26Z")
At work there is a table right outside the bathroom, so I usually stash my coffee there. But sometimes I use the lobby bathroom on my way in or at lunch, and if I happen to have a coffee or soda in hand, I wouldn’t think twice about walking in with it. My purse is full of all kinds of things I put in and on my mouth- mints, lipstick, candy, etc. I don’t worry about that being in the bathroom, either. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/48 "2012-11-08T02:05:22Z")
I would grab my styro cup of coffee, a magazine and head for the pot about 8:45 am every morning. Never once made me sick. Retired now and still do it at home. No sissies allowed in my house! ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/49 "2012-11-08T02:37:15Z")
I wouldn’t bring it in because I don’t drink coffee. ---
**Author:** ![Tamex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Tamex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamex)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/50 "2012-11-08T02:39:44Z")
Where I work, there’s a shelf just inside the bathroom door where many people stash things like coffee cups and the paperwork they were carrying to meetings while they use the facilities. ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/51 "2012-11-08T03:09:43Z")
I voted “Yes”, and I’d do it without a lid. I’ve held coffee in one hand while using the urinal on several occasions. I don’t think I’ve ever brought a cup with me while using a stall, although that’s more an issue of there being nowhere to put it. If bathrooms were really awash in hazardous floating shit particles, they’d be landing on your mouth and in your lungs anyway. ---
**Author:** ![overlyverbose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9dc877/32.png) [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/52 "2012-11-08T03:35:50Z")
I voted weird/gross; however, I feel I should clarify. It _looks_ weird/gross. Yeah, yeah, yeah, who cares what anyone else thinks and all that crap… Well, at work, I feel I’ve got a lot less leeway for strange than I do at home. I don’t want to be thought of as that chick who drinks coffee in the crapper. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/53 "2012-11-08T03:52:48Z")
Of course it’s gross! I mean, _coffee_? Who drinks that vile stuff? But, um, I guess I wouldn’t have any inherent objection to taking my mug of tea in with me, if I had some reason to. And I’ve often washed out my mug in there, due to that being where the sinks were. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/54 "2012-11-08T04:00:06Z")
Never seen a coffeemaker in a bathroom; have seen a coworker put up a coffee cup asking “somebody hold it for me?” before going into the bathroom at work (in those jobs where the logistics of the office made it likely, it wasn’t a daily thing but frequent enough that nobody batted a lid). ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/55 "2012-11-08T04:11:39Z")
I’ve seen coffeemakers by the sink in hotels where they have a separate vestibule for the toilet. I can’t recall if I’ve seen one in a full bathroom, but it wouldn’t shock me if I had. ---
**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/56 "2012-11-08T04:15:16Z")
What do you germophobes do when you are eating alone at a restaurant and have leftovers or a drink to go with you? After losing them to over zealous busboys one too many times, I take them in with me. Usually I set them on the sink. Haven’t died yet. ---
**Author:** ![Pine\_Fresh\_Scent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/43a26b/32.png) [@Pine\_Fresh\_Scent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pine_Fresh_Scent)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/57 "2012-11-08T04:37:25Z")
I’ll take my spill-proof mug in on occasion, but I set it by the sink or on the towel dispenser. What I try to avoid in public bathrooms is grabbing the door handle on my way out if possible, since who knows how many unwashed hands have grabbed the same handle that my just-cleaned hands are touching. If it’s an inward-opening door with a handle, I’ll use my pinky and grab it where the handle makes a bend to avoid coming away with stink hand. If it opens outward, I’ll use my hip. I don’t walk out with my hands up like a scrubbed-in surgeon (yet). ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/58 "2012-11-08T05:05:36Z")
I will bring it in if the bathroom is split into a sink area and a stall area, with a door in between them, so I can leave it by the sinks. ---
**Author:** ![Leiko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Leiko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leiko)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/59 "2012-11-08T05:31:57Z")
It has to be something with a closed container. Taking a drink in with me only happens if I either haven’t claimed a desk for the day yet (I’m in a call center that rotates row assignment based on which supervisors are working that day) or if I’m on my way out the door but need to a toilet stop before I get it in the car. Even then, it’s common to stash a drink on top of the paper towel dispenser, so I usually do that unless all that space is taken up by other people’s drinks or a spare roll of paper towels. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2012, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263/60 "2012-11-08T12:00:42Z")
I voted yes, assuming you’re including stay-at-home-fulltime-mum as work, and I don’t put a full cup of hot liquids down anywhere the toddler-features can reach it, so yes, it’s been to the loo with me a few times! And the bath 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-bring-a-cup-of-coffee-into-the-restroom-at-work/640263.md?page=4)