A Japanese steakhouse in Florida announced it is closing Friday after seven people said they were poisoned with methamphetamines last month after allegedly eating at one of the restaurant’s hibachi tables, authorities said.
On June 10, the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office investigated the incident after three people announced through their attorney that they had tested positive for meth and were seeking answers about how it happened, the Pensacola News Journal, part of the USA TODAY network, reported.
The sheriff’s office closed the case without making an arrest because of a lack of evidence into how the seven people were poisoned. But, owners of Nikko Japanese Steakhouse in Santa Rosa County, Florida, said the backlash received on social media is causing them to close.
On Friday, the restaurant posted a lengthy message on its Facebook account announcing its closure.
“After more than ten years of serving the Pace community, we have decided to close Nikko Japanese Steakhouse,” the restaurant said. “It was determined by the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s office that there was nothing linking the restaurant to the accusations, and after a clear survey by the health department, we re-open our doors. We are so thankful to our regulars who came back to support us, unfortunately it just wasn’t enough to keep the doors open.”
Owners said they have been ‘brutally harassed’ by various media outlets since initial reports
In the post, the restaurant said they were “brutally harassed” by various media outlets “who have slandered and defamed every aspect” of their business.
“Today, a family-owned and operated business is closed, 20 employees are out of work, all because of the power of social media,” the restaurant said. “We are heartbroken, but were unable to sustain the cost to stay open, when it seemed that every day, a local news outlet wanted to find something else to report on.”
“Thank you for your years of loyal patronage, for letting us celebrate your special occasions at our hibachi tables and for loving us through so many life changes, and even a global pandemic,” the restaurant added. “Please, respect our privacy as we try to recover and figure out what our future holds. We will fondly remember our times together.”
3 people test positive for meth
On June 9, Brandon Gray, his wife Jordan and their friend Matthew Gilley said they were at a hibachi table at the restaurant with four other guests when the incident occurred. Pensacola attorney Aaron Watson, who the Grays and Gilley hired, said neither party involved knew each other beforehand, the PNJ reported.
Jordan said she and her husband didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary during the dinner, but began experiencing symptoms later that evening.
When Brandon called a friend, who is a police officer in Santa Rosa County, to tell them about their symptoms, the friend said another family with the same symptoms had arrived in the emergency room after eating at the restaurant. It was the same family the Grays sat with, the PNJ reported.
Drug tests conducted at the Santa Rosa Medical Center confirmed that at least three of the people involved in the incident tested positive for meth and negative for all other drugs tested, the PNJ reported.
Sheriff’s office won’t pursue charges due to lack of evidence
Multiple employees pointed to a worker they thought contaminated the food, but a lack of evidence left the investigation at a standstill, according to a report obtained by the PNJ.
“Due to the lack of eyewitness and surveillance footage, I am unable to determine who if any person associated with the restaurant contaminated the food consumed by the patrons,” the reporting officer said. “It is believed based on the statements from the workers that (the employee) possibly unknowingly contaminated the food, but this cannot be confirmed.”
31 health violations found at the restaurant
On June 9, the day of the alleged poisoning, the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation conducted an inspection at the restaurant and conducted a follow-up inspection on June 13.
The department found a total of 31 violations at the restaurant, including employees switching from preparing raw to ready-to-eat food without washing their hands and the restaurant was reporting with an expired Division of Hotels and Restaurants license, the PNJ reported.
Contributing: Benjamin Johnson, Brittany Misencik, Pensacola News Journal staff
