5 sick: Seattle restaurant closed after links to E. coli

King County Public Health is investigating an outbreak of E. coli at the Matador restaurant in Ballard that sickened five people.

matador-seattleHealth officials said in all five cases, customers developed symptoms including diarrhea and abdominal cramps after eating at the restaurant late last month. Three of those people had to be hospitalized, and one of those patients developed a kidney problem. All five people have since recovered.

Laboratory tests determined all five people had the same strain of E. coli.

The restaurant has been temporarily closed while the health department investigates the cause of the contamination. The restaurant will also be thoroughly cleaned and sanitized.