fishing

(

the Happiest

.

of New Years

-

Stage 6' Co's cole slaw is pinpointed as the source
of the hepatitis outbreak in Oakland County.

to all our friends

and customers

JULIE EDGAR

Senior Writer

ka,

Mon.-Sat. 10 - 6
Thurs. 10 - 9

Its All In The Mix

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9/26
1997

10

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hyllis Payson loves the
chopped liver and chicken
soup at Stage & Co. restau-
rant in West Bloomfield.
Not only does the West Bloomfield
resident eat at or take out from the
Orchard Lake Road deli at least once a
week, but she usually buys its liver and
soup to complement her holiday table.
Not this year.
"This will affect my Stage habit for a
while. It's too fresh in my mind,"
Payson said Tuesday after Oakland
County health officials named Stage as
the source of the hepatitis outbreak
that has sickened 43 people in Oakland
County since early August and may
have led to the Sept. 7 death of 67-
year-old Martin Olshansky of West
Bloomfield.
County officials announced in a
press conference that the source of the
hepatitis virus was cole slaw that was
eaten on Aug. 5, 6 and 9. The Stage
imports cabbage that is already
chopped and packaged and mixes it in
the restaurant.
However, officials couldn't deter-
mine if the slaw was contaminated dur-
ing preparation or when a server han-
dled it. They said only that the threat
of infection has passed.
Martin Olshansky's widow, Pearl,
said her husband ate at the Stage a few
times each week, and most likely had
been there the week he fell ill.
"I'm just numb, and I'm glad they
know where it's coming from so other
people are aware," she said Tuesday.
Her husband also suffered from
emphysema.
Sandy Wiatrak, a regular at the
Jewish Community Center's health
club in West Bloomfield, said the news
about the Stage was the "talk of the
men's club" Tuesday.
He himself rarely dines at the restau-
rant, and "I don't know if I'll ever go
now," he said. But, Wiatrak added, "If
it was a [food] handler, I don't blame
the restaurant. However, if [the food]

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EXP 10/2/97

Slaw
Is The Culprit

was old, it's a different circumstance
altogether."
Rhea Berger said she doesn't often
eat at the Stage but now won't go there
at all.
"Truthfiilly, I wouldn't go back. It
leaves a bad taste in my mouth," she
said.
Stage owner Steve Goldberg said the
restaurant is implementing a host of
precautionary measures that include
putting the slaw preparation exclusively
in the hands of the head chef. Counter
workers previously mixed the cole slaw,
he said.
Also, a new batch of slaw will be
mixed every day, all Stage employees
will be required to wash their hands
every 20 minutes, the use of plastic dis-

"My concern is
my customers
),
and employees.

— Steve Goldberg

posable gloves will be expanded, and a
consultant will be brought in to make
recommendations on tightening health
standards in the restaurant, Goldberg
said.
One Stage waiter is out sick with -a
confirmed case of hepatitis, an inflam-
mation of the liver that causes flu-like
symptoms and jaundice. Another wait-
er also is ill, but the diagnosis is uncer-
tain, Goldberg said.
Since county health workers began
their investigation, all Stage employees
have been immunized against the virus.
Goldberg said the Stage serves 1,000
customers daily and sells 400 pounds
of cole slaw each week. Whether or not
business is affected by the news, he
said, is not his immediate concern.
"My concern right now is my cus-
tomers and employees. Any impact on
sales is secondary," Goldberg said.
Isolating the cause of the hepatitis

outbreak meant interviewing, in some —/
cases twice, every person diagnosed
with the virus. Rosemarie Rowney,
manager of Oakland County's Health
Division, said officials looked at gro-
cery stores that the victims frequented,
as well as other restaurants before zero- \I
ing in on the Stage. Dr. Carolyn Bird,
chief of the county's medical services,
said the investigation entailed talking to
the companions of those affected to
find out where and what they ate dur-
ing the period of exposure.
By last Sunday, the county conclud-
ed that the cole slaw at Stage was the
culprit.
The Michigan Department of
Agriculture is checking out the supplier
of the cabbage used for the cole slaw to
ensure that the contamination did not
happen in the field or en route to the
restaurant.
Ronald L. Grimes, administrator of
environmental health services for
Oakland County, said the Stage will
not be cited for any violations nor
given a fine.
"There are no mechanisms for fin-
ing," he said.
Oakland County Executive L.
Brooks Patterson praised Goldberg at
Tuesday's press conference for his equa-
nimity during an obviously rough time.
"Mr. Goldberg stepped up to the
plate. He was extremely cooperative,"
he said.
And Patterson announced that he
and his staff and other restaurateurs in
the area would show their confidence
in the Stage by dining there on
Wednesday.