On December 11, 2017, the King County Public Health Department (“DOH”) announced that they were investigating an outbreak of salmonellosis associated with the Miller’s Guild restaurant in Seattle, Washington. Six persons from four separate meal parties became ill after eating at the restaurant on different dates from August 15, 2017, to November 3, 2017. One of the ill persons was hospitalized and has since recovered.
Laboratory testing and genetic identification has indicated that three of the ill persons were infected with the same strain of Salmonella bacteria—Salmonella Braenderup—thereby strongly suggesting a common source of infection.
As part of the DOH investigation, Environmental Health investigators visited and closed the restaurant on November 21, 2017. During the field inspection, potential risk factors, such as practices that contribute to the risk of cross contamination, were identified, and several environmental samples were collected for. Salmonella was not found in environmental samples collected form the restaurant on November 21. However, epidemiologic and laboratory evidence from ill persons indicated that food served at Miller’s guild was the likely source of the outbreak.
On November 27, 2017, the DOH was notified of an additional ill person infected with Salmonella after eating at Miller’s Guild restaurant between October 15 and 21, 2017. The ill person was an employee at Miller’s Guild, but there was no evidence indicating that the person was the source of the outbreak.