Investigation opens into Michelin restaurant death and food poisonings

A Spanish judge has launched an investigation into the death of a woman who had eaten at a Michelin-starred restaurant now at the centre of a major food poisoning outbreak.

The 46-year-old woman, who has not been named, died in the early hours of Sunday after having a meal with her husband and son at the Riff restaurant in the eastern city of Valencia.

Regional health authorities say 30 people – including the woman, her husband and son – fell ill with food poisoning after eating at Riff between 13 and 16 February. The woman’s husband and son are recovering.

A judge in Valencia has opened an inquiry into the death and is awaiting the results of a postmortem and an analysis of samples taken from the restaurant.

The regional high court told the Europa Press news agency that no individuals were currently under investigation.

In a statement on Thursday, the Valencia health department said food safety officers visited the restaurant on 18 February and did not find any obvious explanation for the poisonings.

Samples of dishes served as a part of a tasting menu are being analysed by the National Toxicology Institute.

A spokeswoman for the regional health ministry declined to comment on reports that a species of mushroom might have been the source of the outbreak, saying the analysis was still being carried out.

Bernd H Knöller, the head chef and owner of Riff, has closed the restaurant, offered his deepest condolences and is collaborating with the regional health authorities to determine what happened.

“I’ve taken the decision to close the restaurant until we know the precise causes and can reopen with the necessary guarantees for the safety of both staff and customers,” Knöller said.

The chef added that preliminary inspections had found that the restaurant had complied with the necessary health regulations.