KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Kansas City Health Department may soon reopen popular Westport spot Californos.
The restaurant has been closed for nearly two weeks while health officials investigated reports of illnesses tied to food served at two events on March 31. An inspection on April 4 also revealed 11 critical violations at Californos, including undercooked food.
KCMO Health Dept. Spokesman Bill Snook said they interviewed 231 people, and 126 reported getting sick after eating food from Californos at the two events.
"There were multiple issues, so we don't know if it was actually a food product, which would be salmonella, or it could be a norovirus, where the person was ill preparing the food," Snook explained.
Inspectors showed up at Californos Monday afternoon for a follow-up examination, but no one was there to unlock the doors. They waited 40 minutes before leaving.
Californos Manager Aaron Barksdale-Burns said he was not told the health department would be there for an inspection, which is why no one was there.
The health department has scheduled another inspection for the restaurant. If all goes well, Californos could reopen before the end of the week.
"Because of what we found in the investigation, there were multiple things that had to occur, and I think Californos will be addressing those shortly," Snook said.
