This is the hilarious moment a fed-up diner gets behind the counter to help the overworked waitress to prepare meals for hungry customers.

The restaurant’s chef had been laid low by COVID, leaving just the hard-pushed owner to do everything.

Video footage from the eaterie – in Shiyan, Hubei Province – shows how one customer jumped in to help with the long lunchtime queue.

The DIY chef – named in local media only as Mr Chen – had been waiting at the fast food restaurant with friends for their meals for 30 minutes.

When he told the waitress he was a good cook, she moved aside and let him step up to the hotplate.

As he expertly set to work, she can be heard telling him he is using too much chilli.

But she admitted she was amazed at how the dishes turned out.

The video gained a lot of comments from netizens on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, such as ‘Han Fei modeling 15386794440’ who joked: “The necessary skills for chefs to taste the food, are to just dip your finger, lick it, and serve.”

And ‘Xi’an Wangdaokai’ advised: “Be careful with the Food and Drug Administration, you will be fined if you are serious.”