Health unit closes Carleton Place restaurant after diners fall violently ill

A restaurant in Carleton Place was closed by a health unit after a group of diners grew violently ill. CTV’s Dylan Dyson reports.

A restaurant in Carleton Place has been shut down by Southeast Public Health after several people reported becoming intensely ill after eating there.

Eataria Unlimited, located at 73 Bridge Street in Carleton Place, has been shut down following an inspection on April 14.

Amanda Wormleighton, a personal trainer in Carleton Place, was part of the group that called Southeast Public Health to conduct an inspection.

She says she and five other co-workers attended Eataria Unlimited April 9 for a work lunch, and shortly following their meal, many started to feel unwell.

“Out of the six of us, four of us got sick. Two of us didn’t,” Wormleighton told CTV News.

“They had something that had no lettuce on it. So that’s where we believe the connection is, is the lettuce.”

Within 24 hours, Wormleighton says she became sicker than she has ever been before.

“I ended up violently ill. I threw up, over the course of 12 hours, something like 20-some-odd times. I had a fever of 103. I ended up in really bad shape, where I was almost delirious from how high my fever was getting.”

Her co-worker, Kayleigh Trudeau, says she ordered a donair wrap and suffered a similar fate.

“Throwing up lasted about eight hours. I think I threw up about 12 to 14 times,” Trudeau said.

After the realization they were suffering from the same symptoms, they contacted Eataria Unlimited to notify them. Trudeau says they were offered a refund on their meal.

It was then that the group contacted the health unit.

“It was to the point where we just didn’t feel that food could be made safely and served to the public,” says Kim McCann, manager of environmental health at Southeast Public Health.

The health unit’s report confirms that the business was not in compliance for all eight of the inspection categories:

• Premises is operated and maintained free from every condition that will permit a health hazard, adversely affect sanitary operation and adversely affect food
• Every room where food is prepared, processed, packaged, served, transported, manufactured, handled, sold, offered for sale or displayed is maintained in a sanitary condition to prevent contamination of food
• Every room where food is prepared, processed, packaged, served, transported, manufactured, handled, sold, offered for sale, or displayed is kept free from materials and equipment not regularly used in the room
• Single-service containers and articles stored in a manner and place to prevent contamination
• Premise is protected against the entrance of pests and maintained to prevent harboring or breeding of pests
• Multi-service articles are cleaned and sanitized after each use
• Surfaces of equipment and facilities that contact food are cleaned and sanitized as often as necessary
• Food is protected from contamination and adulteration

McCann confirms that insects were found on the premises and that pest control has been brought in to help get the situation in order.

“She said it was one of the filthiest restaurants she’s ever seen,” said Trudeau, on what the health inspector told her following their inspection.

“She said, you absolutely all are correct. You had food poisoning,” added Wormleighton. “And she said that the cross-contamination was shocking to her.”

CTV News contacted Eataria Unlimited for comment but did not receive a response.

“I felt a little bit violated that they felt it was okay to serve me food that could get me that sick,” said Trudeau.

The group of co-workers said that they anticipated backlash for speaking out against a local business but felt obligated to so that no one else suffered from the same illness they experienced.

“I’m all about supporting local,” said Wormleighton.

“It’s just it’s disappointing. It really is. You want businesses to do well here. It’s a real shame.”

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