Dinner at World's 'Top Restaurant' Leaves Dozens Wretching

Diners who forked out for a top-notch meal in a Danish restaurant dubbed the world's best eatery got more than they bargained for when dozens came down with a nasty case of food poisoning.

The two-Michelin-star Noma restaurant in Copenhagen prides itself on dishes like pike perch and cabbages or wild duck and pear but in February its delights left 63 punters and some staff members vomiting or suffering from diarrhea, health officials said Friday.

The diners at Noma, which grabbed the number one spot in Restaurant magazine's prestigious annual ranking in 2010, 2011 and 2012, fell sick over a five-day period and the outbreak may have come from a sick kitchen staff worker, inspectors said in a report which can be seen on the eatery's website.

The inspectors from the Danish food ministry criticized the restaurant for not alerting authorities quickly enough and for failing to take adequate action after the worker fell ill.

Noma blamed a delay in disinfecting the restaurant's kitchen on internal communication problems, the ministry said. Even when members of two separate dining parties complained by e-mail, and one employee reported vomiting after handling food, no measures were taken the morning after.

Restaurant management was not immediately available for comment on Friday.

Noma charges 1,500 kroner (around 200 euros or $260) for a menu without drinks.