Aliano’s reopens after health department investigation
Aliano’s Ristorante in downtown Batavia has reopened after a Kane County Health Department investigation failed to find a source of the salmonella that sickened six customers last week.
The restaurant at 90 N. Island Avenue, voluntarily closed its doors on Friday after the health department received notice of the six cases that were possibly linked to the establishment and reopened Thursday.
The health department tested the Italian restaurant, its employees and its supplier, and all tests came back negative, according to health department spokesman Tom Schlueter.
“I voluntarily closed to make sure nothing is here,” said Mario Aliano, who owns the restaurant with his brother Phillip. “They asked us to throw away our food, and we did.”
The source of the salmonella still had not been identified as of Thursday night, according to Schlueter.
Mario Aliano hopes the negative publicity generated when the health department reported a possible link does not hurt his business, which has been operating for less than a year.
“We put our heart in every little inch of my restaurant,” he said. “My life is here. I am for Batavia. I love Batavians.”
Aliano said he doesn’t blame the health department and worked with them to protect the public.
“The owners, my brother and I, we work 93-hour weeks. We are dedicated. We are involved,” he said. “One of the owners is always back in the kitchen.”