![\"Valentines](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1782344239_95_X67I2FHRVFFIPK5E7QAKOVDMRA.jpg\")
Valentines in Manukau was at the centre of a norovirus outbreak on June 12.<\/p>\n
Public health officials are investigating the potential source of a norovirus outbreak in Auckland after multiple people who visited a popular buffet restaurant fell ill.<\/p>\n
The National Public Health Service said 15 people reported symptoms after visiting an Auckland restaurant on June 12, with Auckland Council confirming to the Herald that the establishment was buffet restaurant Valentines in Manukau.<\/p>\n
\u201cPublic health has been notified of a gastroenteritis outbreak linked to an Auckland restaurant,\u201d National Public Health Service (northern region) medical officer of health Dr Li-Wern Yim told the Herald.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo date, 15 people have reported symptoms, all of whom visited the restaurant on June 12, 2026. The cause of the illness has been identified as norovirus.<\/p>\n
\u201cPublic health is currently investigating the possible source of the outbreak.\u201d<\/p>\n
Multiple diners at Valentines Manukau have reported getting sick after visiting the restaurant on June 12.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy family and I went to Valentines in Manukau on Friday night and 24 hours later, we all started violently throwing up,\u201d one diner said in a one-star Google review last week.<\/p>\n
\u201cWorst food poisoning symptoms I have ever experienced. We are all from different households and all our symptoms started at the same time matching that of salmonella, E. coli and campylobacter.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another diner said their family and other people in their party also experienced \u201cvomiting and diarrhea\u201d a few days after eating at the restaurant on the same Friday.<\/p>\n
Auckland Council manager of specialist operations licensing and compliance Veronica Lee-Thompson said it was notified by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) on June 17 about a \u201csuspected gastrointestinal outbreak potentially linked to dining at Valentines in Manukau on June 12\u2033.<\/p>\n
\u201cFood safety officers from the council and MPI undertook a joint visit to Valentines on June 18,\u201d Lee-Thompson told the Herald.<\/p>\n
Valentines in Manukau was at the centre of a norovirus outbreak on June 12.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe council food safety officer found no food safety issues during the visit and therefore the restaurant\u2019s food safety grade was not affected.<\/p>\n
\u201cMPI continues to investigate the cause of the potential outbreak.\u201d<\/p>\n
Valentines Manukau told the Herald the restaurant was alerted about the outbreak by the National Public Health Service.<\/p>\n
The restaurant confirmed in a statement it complied with authorities during the visit on June 18 to check \u201cfood processes and cleanliness\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were quite satisfied after conducting the visit. We submitted all necessary information and documents requested by them.\u201d<\/p>\n
The restaurant said no staff, who also \u201cconsume buffet food in their breaks\u201d, reported any illness.<\/p>\n
It has received two complaints from customers since the outbreak.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe served more then 1000 customers since June 12 and received no complaints of food poisoning.<\/p>\n
\u201cFood quality and customer experience is our top-most priority. We have proper procedures for refunds and compensations for customers with complaints, which we are following.<\/p>\n
\u201cRight now we are just waiting for the report from authorities regarding the source of this virus.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Ministry for Primary Industries has been approached for comment.<\/p>\n
What is norovirus?<\/p>\n
Norovirus is an infectious disease that causes vomiting and diarrhoea.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople usually develop symptoms one to two days after being infected with the virus, and these symptoms can last for two to three days,\u201d the National Public Health Service\u2019s Yim said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can catch norovirus by eating contaminated food or water or by touching contaminated surfaces. You can also catch it by breathing in droplets from a person who has vomited.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople with norovirus are usually infectious until three days after symptoms have stopped.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yim said it is important to have good\u202fhand hygiene to reduce the risk of spreading the virus.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis includes washing hands with soap and water, particularly after using the toilet. If you have norovirus, you should also stay away from work, community gatherings and school or preschool until free of symptoms for 48 hours.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost people with norovirus can recover safely at home. If you have symptoms, be sure to rest and drink plenty of fluids. You should see your healthcare provider if you have bloody diarrhoea or a fever or if your symptoms have not gone away after seven days. You can also call Healthline on 0800 611 116.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Public health officials are investigating the potential source of a norovirus outbreak in Auckland after multiple people who…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":493923,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[51,134,111,139,147249,69,145398],"class_list":["post-493922","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-auckland","tag-health","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-norovirus","tag-nz","tag-valentines"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493922","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=493922"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493922\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/493923"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=493922"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=493922"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=493922"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}