You paid for the food, so why do you have to sign a legal form to take it home? It has happened to all of us. We order a delicious meal at a restaurant and enjoy every bite, but there’s still some food left on the plate. Instead of letting it go to waste, we ask the staff to pack it. Now what if the waiter returns with not just a takeaway box but also a legal disclaimer that you need to sign before they hand over your leftovers?
That’s exactly what happened at ITC Maratha, and one photo of the form has now gone viral on X. While many people initially found it funny and confusing, thousands of others pointed out that the hotel actually has a very good reason for doing it.
ITC Maratha’s Leftover Food Disclaimer Goes Viral
The discussion started after X user Gaurav Sabnis shared a picture of a disclaimer form that, according to him, was given to a friend after dinner at ITC Maratha. His caption read, “A friend had dinner at ITC Maratha and asked them to pack leftovers to go, and they made him sign a disclaimer that the food will be eaten within 2 hours or discarded! Hilariously bizarre!”
A friend had dinner at ITC Maratha and asked them to pack leftovers to go and they made him sign a disclaimer that the food will be eaten within 2 hours or discarded!
Hilariously bizarre! pic.twitter.com/tgXRrVT3n5— Gaurav Sabnis (@gauravsabnis) July 21, 2026
The document is called a “Disclaimer Form for Leftover Food.” It clearly states that it applies only to a la carte dishes ordered at the restaurant. The form explains that the food being packed was freshly prepared by ITC Hotels and was originally meant to be eaten immediately.
Guests are then asked to agree to a few conditions. The biggest one is that the packed food should either be eaten within two hours or thrown away. It also mentions that the food may need to be discarded even earlier if it is not stored properly.
The form further explains that once the food leaves the hotel, the staff have no idea where or how it will be kept. Because the hotel cannot control any of that, guests agree that they are taking the food at their own risk.
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The two-hour rule may sound a little extreme. But cooked food doesn’t stay safe forever once it is served. If it is left at room temperature for too long, bacteria can start growing rapidly. This is why food safety experts always advise refrigerating leftovers as soon as possible.
Inside the restaurant, hotels carefully control every step of food preparation. The moment the takeaway box leaves the restaurant, all of that control disappears. If the food is not stored properly and someone later falls sick, the restaurant could still end up facing complaints or damage to its reputation.
This Rule Has The Internet Talking
Although the original post described the form as “hilariously bizarre,” many people in the comments believed the hotel was doing the right thing. One user explained that cooked food can quickly become unsafe if it isn’t chilled or stored properly. Another user shared, “In my office cafeteria, we get notifications asking us to consume the food within 30 minutes of it being served.”
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Several users revealed that they had seen similar rules elsewhere. One person shared that they had organized a family lunch at Hyatt Centric. Since a lot of food was left over, the hotel kindly allowed them to pack it. However, the staff made it clear that the food should be eaten within two hours. Another user recalled visiting Hilton Amsterdam, where they weren’t allowed to pack leftover food at all because of food safety concerns.
Yes, signing a legal form for your leftovers may seem unnecessary or even funny. But once you understand the reason behind it, it starts to make a lot more sense.
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