continued high-level uncertainty over the stinky source<\/a> is trickling down in already-stressed kitchens across the five boroughs \u2014 from high-end eateries to everyday delis.<\/p>\nCheck, please!<\/p>\n
On W. 37th St. at the wagyu-focused omakase spot Togyushi, known for nine-course feasts made with a bounty of ingredients featuring fresh fish and vegetables alike, staff have diligently checking their sources, while staying glued to the latest news on the smelly scourge.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs soon as we learned, we immediately contacted our suppliers to verify the origin and lot information of any potentially affected produce,\u201d Executive Chef Kenichiro Yamasaki told The Post. <\/p>\n
The kitchen crew at Togyushi near Bryant Park in Midtown have been in touch with their suppliers to make sure fresh produce isn\u2019t coming from suspect locations, Executive Chef Kenichiro Yamasaki told The Post. Liz Clayman<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most important step is maintaining close communication with trusted suppliers and carefully managing inventory,\u201d Yamasaki said. <\/p>\n
A kitchen can stay as clean as it wants \u2014\u00a0but if produce comes in contaminated, it\u2019s still a crapshoot.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne misconception is that food safety begins and ends in the kitchen,\u201d Yamasaki said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe process actually starts at the farm level and continues through harvesting, distribution, storage, and transportation before ingredients ever reach a restaurant. Every step plays an important role. Situations like this highlight how important transparency, traceability, and quality control are throughout the entire supply chain,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n
In the wake of the outbreak, Togyushi owner Ling Chen said he\u2019s definitely seeing diners behave differently.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve noticed a subtle shift in ordering patterns,\u201d he observed. \u201cSome guests appear less inclined to choose raw vegetable dishes, including salads.\u201d<\/p>\n
Most of Togyushi\u2019s menu is mainly centered around premium Japanese wagyu \u2014\u00a0which \u201cnaturally aligns\u201d with what guests are after now anyway, Chen said.<\/p>\n
Leaf it off<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople are definitely afraid, and they are ordering less lettuce,\u201d Izzy Ramos, general manager at Faicco\u2019s Italian Specialties on Bleecker Street told The Post. <\/p>\n
The century-old-plus sandwich slingers assure that their fresh veg is safe \u2014\u00a0but also note that they\u2019ve been taking extra precautions, too. <\/p>\n
A manager at Faicco\u2019s on Bleecker Street said that staff have noted a sudden spike in requests to \u201chold the lettuce\u201d on the historic deli\u2019s popular sandwiches. @faiccosnyc\/Instagram<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been cleaning everything extra,\u201d Izzy Ramos said.<\/p>\n
The dreaded lettuce is a feature in a handful of the 29 massive sandwiches on the menu at the West Village staple \u2014\u00a0like the Buffalo Chicken and the Turkey Club. <\/p>\n
A house favorite, the Italian Special, piled high with ham, capicola, prosciutto, soppressata, mozzarella, tomato, roasted pepper, oil and red wine vinegar, is another features lettuce.<\/p>\n
According to Ramos, at least 30 percent of recent orders have included requests to hold the lettuce.<\/p>\n
\u201cI get it, once something gets out there on social media and the news, people get scared even if they know it\u2019s safe,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnfazed\u201d<\/p>\n
Over in Brooklyn, Williamsburg\u2019s longtime mini-bagel chain Bagelsmith is beloved for their wraps and sandwiches \u2014\u00a0nearly all including lettuce. <\/p>\n
\u201cAs far as the people coming into my store, everyone around here is very health conscious,\u201d owner Frank Mattera told The Post. \u201cBut our customers are pretty unfazed. I really haven\u2019t noticed any change. People have not started ordering less lettuce, not at all.\u201d<\/p>\n
Customers at Bagelsmith in Williamsburg are \u201cvery health conscious,\u201d owner Frank Mattera told The Post \u2014\u00a0but said that most were continuing to order his wraps and sandwiches as normal, with plenty of lettuce. Stephen Yang<\/p>\n
When he heard about the outbreak, Mattera did a deep dive into his supply chain. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe lettuce we\u2019re getting is from St. Jacques Lettuce, and is a product of Quebec,\u201d Mattera told the Post.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t go wrong with a Saint,\u201d he cracked \u2014\u00a0noting that farms north of the border are seemingly unaffected by the brouhaha.<\/p>\n
Michael, a 24-year-old student who ordered a ham sandwich on an everything bagel at Bagelsmith\u2019s location on Brooklyn\u2019s Lorimer Street and did not want to give his last name, told The Post he\u2019s rolling his eyes over the hysteria.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf it\u2019s not one thing it\u2019s something else,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m still going to enjoy my sandwich.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not really affected<\/p>\n
The mood is much same at the Greenwich Village outpost of the bustling casual French cafe-bar Tartinery.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe get all of our produce from Manhattan Food Exchange, and they always provide us with the freshest products and we always know where they come from,\u201d general manager Yande Dia told The Post of the Ridgewood-based company that supplies restaurants with peak, seasonal fruits and veggies.<\/p>\n
A manager at Tartinery said that kitchen staff at the popular chain always know where their produce is coming from. That confidence appears to be reflected in the way customers are ordering fresh dishes as normal. @tartinery\/Instagram<\/p>\n
At Tartinery, Dia said, people are still ordering up the cafe\u2019s signature dishes like Eggs Benedict \u2014\u00a0which traditionally comes with leafy greens on the side.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also don\u2019t focus on green lettuce; all of our leafy greens are usually alfalfa sprouts, fris\u00e9e greens (curly endives), or spinach, so the recall hasn\u2019t really affected us. I have not noticed people ordering less greens,\u201d Dia reported.<\/p>\n
No iceberg here<\/p>\n
Many a rushed New York lunch involves a trip to pick up a Chipotle bowl \u2014 and while\u00a0the chain has taken its share of beatings in previous food poisoning outbreaks over the years, a representative hastened to assure that the Fresh-Mex giant was closely monitoring the situation. <\/p>\n
Chipotle\u2019s previous proximity to outbreaks may be bringing fresh scrutiny to the chain \u2014\u00a0but there\u2019s no iceberg lettuce on their menus, a rep assured. Tamara Beckwith\/NY POST<\/p>\n
\u201cChipotle does not serve iceberg lettuce in our restaurants, and our romaine and Supergreens salad blend are sourced in the U.S., not Mexico,\u201d said Laurie Schalow, Chief Corporate Affairs and Food Safety Officer for the brand.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are continuing to follow the Cyclospora investigation very closely and will continue to evaluate any new information and take appropriate action,\u201d Schalow continued.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Like NYC restaurant owners don\u2019t have enough s\u2013t to deal with. There\u2019s tariffs and supply chain issues, inflation…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":304933,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[289,30301,66717,29996,232,9,24,56,63,65,64,821],"class_list":["post-304932","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york-city","tag-food-drink","tag-food-poisoning","tag-food-recalls","tag-food-safety","tag-lifestyle","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-ny","tag-nyc","tag-nyc-headlines","tag-nyc-news","tag-restaurants"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304932","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=304932"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304932\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/304933"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=304932"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=304932"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=304932"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}