California Pizza Kitchen Reopens After Norovirus Cleansing

in Walnut Creek has reopened its doors after a quick scrubbing down following an outbreak of norovirus.

The popular downtown restaurant reopened at 3 p.m. Saturday, said regional manager Chris Hedges.

A cleaning crew was brought in Saturday morning and Contra Costa County health officials inspected the facility that same day, said Hedges.

The regional manager said the company was "very pro-active" about getting the restaurant open again.

He said business has been good since the restaurant reopened Saturday. The eatery was indeed half full at 2 p.m. Monday.

Hedges said some customers probably weren't aware of the closure while others were happy about the reopening.

"It's great to get the support of the community and our customers who realize that accidents sometimes happen," said Hedges.

The pizza restaurant closed abruptly Thursday evening after tests by county health officials revealed the presence of norovirus. Three employees and two customers tested positive for the disease.

One Walnut Creek family wrote to Patch, saying they became ill after eating at California Pizza Kitchen on Friday, June 9. They reported their illnesses to the county health department the following Thursday.