Restaurant Closes Early After Some Diners Become Ill

A Beverly Hills restaurant closed early after some patrons became ill Sunday evening, apparently from an ingredient in the salads, the restaurant manager said.

Brian Monfort, manager of Lawry’s The Prime Rib on La Cienega’s Restaurant Row, said he closed the restaurant just before 8 p.m., two hours before the usual closing time, after 10 or 12 diners became nauseated.

“We knew we had a problem because we had seven or eight of them in the bathroom,” some of them vomiting, Monfort said.

About 500 meals had been served since the restaurant opened at 3 p.m. Sunday, but the complaints did not begin until evening, he said. Monfort said many diners began to feel nauseated after eating their salads, leading him to conclude that the salads or the croutons were the cause.

One woman, who identified herself only as a Lawry’s regular named Laurel, said she began to feel ill after she finished her salad. She said she believes at least 35 people became ill, and both bathrooms were packed with nauseated patrons.

Monfort said the restaurant had moved from across the street last week, and he speculated that the problem may lie with new food preparation equipment, such as the deep fryer used to prepare croutons.

County health officials were notified, he said, and the kitchen equipment and food will be tested today.