Gastrointestinal illness associated with Birrieria Tijuana and Carnita’s Mr. Porky Taqueria in Burien

Summary

Public Health investigated an outbreak of gastrointestinal (stomach) illnesses associated with Birrieria Tijuana and Carnita’s Mr. Porky Taqueria in Burien. We did not find a specific food or drink item that might have caused the illnesses.

This outbreak appears to be over, and the investigation is complete.

Illnesses

Since January 9, 2026, three people reported becoming sick after dining at the restaurant on January 8, 2026. The sick people were from three different households. Sick people reported symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, diarrhea, chills, and fever.

We did not find any sick restaurant workers.

Public Health actions

We visited the restaurant on January 27, 2026, and we found several food safety problems that could have contributed to this outbreak:

• Workers were not washing their hands correctly between tasks.
• Handwashing sinks had no soap and were difficult to access.
• Dishes, utensils, equipment, and food preparation areas were not being sanitized.
• Utensil handles were stored inside food at the self-serve topping bar, which can contaminate food the customers eat.

Because of these issues, we closed the restaurant to protect people’s health while the restaurant took steps to improve food safety, including fully disinfecting the facility. This closure also applied to the two food trucks that rely on the restaurant’s kitchen for food preparation.

We reinspected the restaurant on January 29, 2026 and found that they fixed the food safety problems, so the restaurant was allowed to reopen on the same day.

Laboratory testing

No laboratory testing was done.