In North Carolina folks vacation at the beach or in the mountains. The idea is to get a bunch of people together in a house and cook/eat/drink and recharge. In Ontario (that’s in Canada) people relax and party in cottages that line the hundreds of lakes north of Toronto.

I spent this past weekend in cottage country, as it’s known, celebrating my parents anniversary with a bunch of family and friends.

One of the popular Southern Ontario-to-the-cottage roads travels through Bradford. Home of a marsh, Chicago Blackhawk Brandon Mashinter, and over 20 confirmed cases of salmonellosis linked to St. Louis Bar and Grill.

According to 104.5 CHUM FM, the restaurant has been closed twice in the past three weeks due to illnesses.

22 cases have been confirmed by lab testing and another 18 people have symptoms that are consistent with Salmonella.

Dr. Colin Lee with the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit says the restaurant had to be closed on May 31st and then again on June 15th-16th to allow for food samples to be taken and proper disinfection.

“We found Salmonella in some of the cooked food from the restaurant, as well as in some raw food.”

In a statement provided to NEWSTALK 1010, St. Louis Bar & Grill says the safety and well-being of its customers and staff are its highest priorities. The company underlined that it has been working closely with the local health unit and that its Bradford location is open as normal.

“On two occasions (May 31 and June 15), we cooperated fully with the Simcoe Muskoka Health Unit to close the restaurant for inspection, sanitization and disinfection. On both occasions, the Health Unit was satisfied that there was no risk to public safety and cleared us to re-open within a few hours (May 31) and the next day (June 15).”

There is always a risk to public safety when food is involved. It’s up to restaurant operators to reduce the risks. Salmonella in raw and cooked food isn’t an indicator of good risk management.