NOTE: The First Lawsuit Filed Today in Orange County on Behalf of Minor Hospitalized for 17 days. The Lawsuit was filed by national E. coli lawyer Ron Simon and California’s Gomez Trial Attorneys.
California health officials are investigating an outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O157:H7 linked to beef kofta, described as seasoned ground beef kebabs, served at The Kebab Shop, also referred to in its own materials as TKS. Public materials primarily use “The Kebab Shop” and “TKS”; some media references use “Kabob/Kabab,” but the restaurant’s brand name is The Kebab Shop. The implicated product was ground beef/beef kofta supplied by Olympia Food Industries, Inc., doing business as Olympia Foods, based in Franklin Park, Illinois.
Bottom-line numbers
As of the agencies’ most recent public counts, the outbreak includes 9 confirmed California residents infected with the outbreak strain of STEC O157:H7. Six of the 9 illnesses are children, 5 people have been hospitalized, and 2 developed hemolytic uremic syndrome (Including the one who filed a Kebab Shop lawsuit today), or HUS, a severe complication that can lead to kidney failure. No deaths have been reported. Illness-onset dates range from March 27, 2026, through April 30, 2026.
The outbreak appears, at this point, to be localized to California illnesses, even though the implicated beef kofta was supplied to The Kebab Shop restaurant locations in California, Texas, and Florida. FSIS and media reports based on FSIS information state that no individuals from other states are currently linked to the outbreak.
The implicated food: beef kofta made from raw ground beef
The implicated item is beef kofta, a seasoned ground beef kebab product sold at The Kebab Shop. According to FSIS-reported information, the beef kofta was produced as a raw ground beef product by Olympia Food Industries Inc. d/b/a Olympia Foods in Franklin Park, Illinois, on January 6, 2026, and supplied to The Kebab Shop restaurant locations in California, Texas, and Florida.
This is significant because E. coli O157:H7 in ground beef is a classic high-risk scenario. Grinding meat can distribute surface contamination throughout the product, making proper cooking, supplier controls, cold-chain handling, sanitation, and lot-level traceability central issues in any outbreak investigation.
What CDPH has said
The California Department of Public Health announced that it is working with local health departments and federal partners to investigate the outbreak. CDPH advised consumers about possible exposure to STEC O157:H7 from eating beef kofta served at The Kebab Shop locations in Northern and Southern California. CDPH reported that interviews with ill people indicated that grilled beef kofta served at The Kebab Shop is the likely outbreak source.
CDPH also stated that The Kebab Shop is cooperating with public health officials and voluntarily paused sales of grilled beef kofta at all locations on May 18, 2026. CDPH’s position, as reported in multiple outlets quoting or summarizing the agency, is that the risk of exposure to this product is not ongoing at this time, while the investigation continues to determine the cause, monitor for additional illnesses, and conduct product testing.
CDPH advised that people who ate beef kofta from any The Kebab Shop location and developed symptoms within 10 days should contact a health care provider. Reported symptoms include diarrhea, often bloody, vomiting, and abdominal cramps, with symptoms generally beginning three to four days after infection. CDPH and local reports also advised consumers to discard any leftover grilled beef kofta from the restaurant chain.
What FSIS has said
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service issued a public health alert for beef kofta products served at The Kebab Shop restaurant locations due to possible E. coli O157:H7 contamination. FSIS tied the alert to the ongoing illness investigation and identified Olympia Food Industries/Olympia Foods as the producer of the raw ground beef kofta product.
FSIS reportedly collected raw ground beef kofta samples that tested positive for E. coli O157:H7. Further testing is ongoing to determine whether those positive product samples are genetically related to the specific outbreak strain found in patients. That distinction matters: a positive product test confirms contamination in the implicated product, but whole-genome sequencing or equivalent subtyping is typically needed to establish whether the product isolate matches the outbreak cluster.
FSIS issued the Public Health Alert to make consumers in California, Texas, and Florida aware of the outbreak because the product had been distributed to The Kebab Shop locations in those states. A formal recall reportedly was not requested because the product was no longer available for purchase after The Kebab Shop stopped selling beef kofta on May 18.
Local health department involvement: San Diego County
San Diego County reported 2 local STEC cases linked to people who ate at local The Kebab Shop locations (one filed a lawsuit today against The Kebab and Olympia Foods). One of those individuals was hospitalized and later released. County health officials urged anyone who ate at The Kebab Shop between March 27 and April 30, 2026, and later developed stomach illness, to seek medical care promptly.
San Diego County’s Public Health Services Epidemiology unit and Department of Environmental Health and Quality are reportedly working with state and federal health officials on the local investigation. County public health officer Dr. Sayone Thihalolipavan warned that children, older adults, and immunocompromised people face the highest risk from STEC infections.
The Kebab Shop’s public statements
The Kebab Shop issued a public letter from CEO Arian Baryalai. In that statement, the company said CDPH informed it that cases of E. coli O157:H7 had been linked to ground beef/beef kofta “sourced from a single supplier” and previously used at its restaurants. The company said it immediately stopped all sales of ground beef/beef kofta nationwide on May 18, 2026, after CDPH linked the product as a potential outbreak source.
The company’s letter also stated that there was “no ongoing risk” associated with the issue, that all other proteins sold at TKS come from different suppliers and are not associated with the issue, and that TKS restaurants inspected as part of CDPH’s investigation confirmed compliance with health and safety regulations.
The Kebab Shop’s FAQ goes further than the CEO letter, stating that ground beef/beef kofta supplied by Olympia Foods (who was also sued in the Kabab Shop lawsuit) was contaminated with E. coli O157:H7 as confirmed through USDA testing, while CDPH and USDA investigations remain ongoing. The FAQ says The Kebab Shop removed ground beef/beef kofta from all locations on May 18, no longer receives it from Olympia Foods or any other supplier, terminated its relationship with Olympia Foods, and will not return ground beef/beef kofta to the menu until health officials and its internal investigation team are satisfied that potential issues have been resolved.
The FAQ also says that other proteins, including sirloin steak, chicken, and lamb-and-beef gyro, have always come from different suppliers. According to the company, CDPH and USDA have only implicated the ground beef/beef kofta supplied by Olympia Foods.
Chronology of the outbreak
January 6, 2026: Olympia Food Industries Inc. d/b/a Olympia Foods produced the raw ground beef kofta product in Franklin Park, Illinois, according to FSIS-reported information. The product was supplied to The Kebab Shop locations in California, Texas, and Florida.
March 27, 2026: The earliest reported illness onset date in the California outbreak.
March 27–April 30, 2026: The reported illness-onset window. This is the exposure period local officials are using for consumer warnings, including San Diego County’s warning to people who ate at The Kebab Shop during that interval and later became ill.
April 30, 2026: Latest reported illness onset date in the outbreak.
May 18, 2026: CDPH informed The Kebab Shop that ground beef/beef kofta may be linked to the outbreak, according to the restaurant’s FAQ. The Kebab Shop stopped all sales of ground beef/beef kofta across all locations nationwide that same day.
May 19, 2026: CDPH’s outbreak count was publicly described as 9 California residents infected with the outbreak strain of STEC O157:H7, with 5 hospitalizations, 2 HUS cases, and no deaths.
May 22, 2026: CDPH publicly announced the investigation and linked the outbreak to beef kofta served at several The Kebab Shop locations in California. San Diego County also reported 2 local STEC cases connected to local The Kebab Shop locations.
May 24, 2026: FSIS information reported that The Kebab Shop had stopped selling the implicated product on May 18, and that FSIS product testing had found E. coli O157:H7 in raw ground beef kofta samples, with further testing ongoing to determine whether the product isolate matches the outbreak strain.
May 25–26, 2026: Food Safety News and other outlets reported FSIS’s public health alert and summarized that the implicated beef kofta was produced by Olympia Foods, supplied to The Kebab Shop locations in California, Texas, and Florida, and connected to 9 California illnesses with no out-of-state illnesses then linked.
What remains under investigation
The most important unresolved questions are: where in the production, distribution, handling, or preparation chain the contamination occurred; whether FSIS’s positive beef kofta samples are a genetic match to the patient outbreak strain; whether additional illnesses will be added as testing and interviews continue; and whether any unopened, leftover, or retained product lots remain available for testing.
The current public evidence points strongly to beef kofta supplied by Olympia Foods and served by The Kebab Shop as the outbreak vehicle, but agencies have framed the investigation as ongoing, especially as to product testing and the precise cause of contamination.
Why this outbreak is medically serious
E. coli O157:H7 is a dangerous STEC organism because it can produce Shiga toxin and cause bloody diarrhea, severe abdominal cramps, dehydration, and HUS. HUS is particularly concerning in children and can cause acute kidney failure and long-term renal complications. In this outbreak, the seriousness is already reflected in the numbers: 5 of 9 confirmed patients hospitalized, and 2 of 9 developing HUS.
From an investigative and litigation standpoint, the presence of six pediatric illnesses and two HUS cases makes this a high-severity outbreak even though the confirmed case count remains relatively small. As with many STEC outbreaks, the actual number of exposed or mildly ill individuals may be higher than the confirmed case count because not every ill person seeks care, submits a stool specimen, or is linked to the outbreak through molecular testing – Ron Simon, the attorney who filed the Kabab Shop/Olympia Foods lawsuit stated: “Only about one in thirty victims in any outbreaks get properly reported to state and federal agencies.”
Practical public-health guidance being given
Consumers who ate beef kofta from The Kebab Shop and developed symptoms within 10 days are being urged to contact a health care provider. Consumers have also been told to discard leftover grilled beef kofta from The Kebab Shop. Health officials have reiterated the standard ground-beef safety rule: cook ground beef to an internal temperature of 160°F and wash/sanitize surfaces and utensils that may have contacted raw or undercooked beef.
Summary
The outbreak is currently a California STEC O157:H7 outbreak linked to beef kofta served at The Kebab Shop, involving 9 known illnesses, 6 children, 5 hospitalizations, 2 HUS cases, and no deaths. The implicated beef was supplied by Olympia Food Industries/Olympia Foods, produced as raw ground beef kofta in Illinois, and distributed to The Kebab Shop locations in California, Texas, and Florida. The known illnesses are limited to California at this time. The Kebab Shop stopped selling ground beef/beef kofta nationwide on May 18, 2026, says other proteins are not implicated, and says it has terminated its relationship with Olympia Foods. CDPH is leading the California investigation with FSIS and local health departments; FSIS has issued a public health alert and reported positive E. coli O157:H7 testing in raw beef kofta samples, with further testing ongoing to determine whether those samples match the outbreak strain.
