Raw Oysters Leave at Least 80 Sick from Norovirus at Los Angeles Restaurant Event

Mar. 15, 2025

raw oysters — stock image.Photo:Getty

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Raw oystersserved at a Los Angeles event celebrating the best local restaurants have been linked to a possible norovirus outbreak, leaving at least 80 people sick, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed to food websiteL.A. Taco,ABC NewsandThe Los Angeles Times.

Hollywood Palladium, October 2019.Getty

“We have produced culinary events for many years and take food safety very seriously,” Manning said in a statement to theLos Angeles Timesvia email.

“As is the case with each of our events, we had protocols in place and, based on an inspection from the L.A. County Department of Public Health, we were in compliance with all relevant safety standards," Manning continued. “We also know the care that each chef and restaurant takes in preparing and serving food to our community.”

PEOPLE reached out to the Los Angeles Department of Public Health for comment, but did not immediately hear back.

“At this time, over 80 attendees that consumed the oysters have reported illness,” a Los Angeles County Department of Public Health spokesperson told ABC News.

Pacific Northwest Shellfish Co. owner Leigh Loader said they’ve already stopped shipments. “We are very diligent — the whole industry here,” he told theNew York Times. “Nothing will be reopened until the government here is more than happy that there is no chance of further illnesses.”

A week after theL.A. Times101 Best Restaurants event incident, theCalifornia Department of Public Healthissued a Dec. 13 warning not to eat raw oysters harvested from British Columbia.

Additionally, the U.S. Food and Drug Administrationadvised restaurants and retailersnot to sell the oysters due to potential norovirus contamination.

Mark Kapczynski toldL.A. Tacohe paid between $600 and $700 for two VIP tickets to the event, adding that he and his wife got so sick after consuming the food that he “collapsed” in his home.

raw oysters — stock image.Getty

“They stuffed so many people into that place,” he said of the venue. “Someone who was sick might have sneezed on the food.”

Kapczynski also pointed out that the oysters “were sitting out there wide open.”

“I feel like that may have been it,” he said.

Kapczynski also told theNew York Timeshe missed several days of work after consuming food at the event and “could barely walk.”

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“It was a disaster,” he said. “These are the top restaurants in L.A. You think you’re safe. Not what you expect.”

According to L.A. Taco, who said they spoke with 11 attendees, including one of their own staff members who became sick, a spokesperson for the health department issued the following statement without referring to theLos Angeles Timesgathering specifically: “The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is investigating a norovirus outbreak associated with oysters that were served at an event on December 3, 2024.”

“Norovirus is the leading cause of vomiting and diarrhea, and foodborne illness in the United States,” theCenters for Disease Control(CDC) reports, urging individuals to “Always wash your hands and handle food well.”

source: people.com