Guests sue Nikko’s Japanese steakhouse over meth poisoning
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Guests at a Japanese steakhouse in Florida are suing the restaurant after allegedly eating food containing methamphetamine.
Jordan Gray, her husband Brandon Gray and Mathew Gilley have sued the Nikko Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar in Pace, about 15 miles north of Pensacola near the Alabama border. According to their complaint filed in Santa Rosa County in September, they were three of several guests who were poisoned after eating at Nikko’s, where they sat at a hibachi table.
“On or about June 9, 2023, following their visit to Defendant Nikko’s Restaurant, Plaintiffs began experiencing increased heart rate, increased sweating, rapid speech, racing thoughts, dizziness, nausea, excess energy, difficulty sleeping, vomiting, paranoia, and anxiety suffering and/or fear,” the complaint states.
According to the complaint, they went to the emergency room where they were “tested for intoxicants.” At a news conference, Jordan Gray said she and her husband found the family at the same table in the restaurant. They were sick too.
“On or about June 10, 2023 at Santa Rosa Medical Center, each plaintiff tested positive for methamphetamine exposure,” the complaint states.
The Santa Rosa Sheriff’s Office examined some of the plaintiffs’ leftover food and determined that the food was positive for methamphetamine.
Nikko Japanese Sushi Bar in Pace, Florida. Inset above: Plaintiff Jordan Gray claims she was poisoned with methamphetamine in food at the restaurant. Inserted below: Plaintiff Matthew Gilley (images via YouTube screengrab/WKRG).
“I mean, I was horrified,” Jordan Gray said at a press conference in June, according to a local Fox affiliate WALA. “As a nurse, as a community professional, as a mother, I was terrified.”
“I lost a lot of weight because I didn’t want to eat,” Gilley said, according to a Mobile CBS affiliate WKRG. “A wish not to have the same feeling I had that night when I didn’t drink water for days.”
Gilley also said his heart rate rose to “almost 200.” I was horrified at what that meant.
As Pensacola News Journal reportedA Santa Rosa Sheriff’s Office investigation into drug use was closed due to lack of evidence. Investigators were unable to determine whether anyone associated with the restaurant put the drugs in the food, and reports that an employee may have accidentally contaminated the food could not be confirmed.
Nikkos has permanently closed its doors in July.
The plaintiffs allege negligence, failure to warn, strict liability and breach of implied warranties. They are seeking an unspecified amount but claim their damages exceed $50,000.
In a statement of claim, the restaurant denied the allegations and sought to dismiss two of the counts.
Read the complaint below.
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