The formal review by Denmark’s food safety agency, Fødevarestyrelsen, has found that 67 diners at the tiny Noma restaurant suffered from nausea and diarrhea after they contracted norovirus at the establishment between Feb. 12 and 16.
Were it not for the fact the Noma was named for each of the past three years as the world’s best restaurant by Restaurant magazine, the finding probably would have gone without much notice. The 12-seat restaurant entertained just 78 patrons during the week when the illnesses were occurring. Noma’s kitchen, which gained attention for its cutting edge equipment did not have hot water for employees to wash their hands, according to the food safety agency. Noma’s 32-year-old Chef Rene Redzepi gained attention for using only food native to the Nordic region, including local and wild food he often forages himself. Before it made its customers sick, reservations at Noma were required months in advance and the menu without drinks put one’s charges in the $260 per seating range.
