LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – Earlier this week, the Lancaster County Health Department announced cases of cyclosporiasis. Now a few restaurants, including Stauffer’s Cafe & Pie Shoppe, are taking extra precautions to keep their customers safe.
Melissa Law, who has worked at Stauffer’s Cafe & Pie Shoppe for about five years, said they pulled lettuce, spinach and strawberries from their menu because of the outbreak.
“We’re just trying to be really proactive,” Law said. “It’s better to be safe than, you know, to be sorry.”
Although they haven’t had any concerns from vendors, they want to protect the people they serve.
“We do serve a lot of, like, at-risk populations, whether it be babies or the elderly,” Law said. “You know, there’s, of course, a lot of people in our restaurants that we, you know, of course, would never want to get sick.”
Protecting customers is a value that regulars like Steve Smith and Donita Kemmerer appreciate.
“We’re just being careful what we buy too food wise, especially with produce and things.” Donita said.
However, it doesn’t come as a shock.
“They always care about their customers,” Donita said. “They make sure to get your food on time. It’s hot. They apologize if they’re super busy,”
Despite the changes, though, it won’t stop either of them from going.
“It makes me feel comfortable because they do care about their customers and they care about their safety and their well-being. So they make sure the food is safe,” Donita said.
While Law and the rest of the staff continue to navigate these challenges, she said that community support goes a long way.
“I know it can be a little bit scary for people to go out to eat when there are things going on,” Law said. “If people can always support local, we always really appreciate that too.”
There’s no timeline on when the items will return to the menu.
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