Allegations of intentional food contamination by former employees of the Leawood Hereford House have not only led to multiple lawsuits over the past month, but have also tarnished the reputation of one of the Kansas City area’s most iconic restaurant brands.
Jace Hanson was arrested in April and has since been indicted on 33 felony charges, including dozens of charges related to allegedly contaminating food in the Hereford House kitchen, as well as 10 new charges related to possession of child sexual abuse material.
Since Hanson’s arrest, at least eight civil lawsuits have been filed in Johnson County Court by people who claim they became ill after eating at Hereford House during the roughly three weeks that Hanson worked there.
“This has been a difficult situation for customers and all involved at Hereford House Restaurant in Leawood,” Hereford House said in an emailed statement to The Post in May.
But the trouble may not be over yet.
While local officials in Leawood are scrambling to help the restaurant, which for decades has been an important meeting place and civic institution in Johnson County, at least one local food industry expert says Hereford House needs a serious rebranding to survive this and stay in customers’ good graces.
Here’s what we know:
The employee has been charged with multiple felonies.
Hanson was originally charged in April in Johnson County District Court with one count of criminal intimidation and intentionally contaminating food.
He has since been indicted on dozens more charges and now faces more than 30 felony counts, including 10 counts of child exploitation for possessing child sexual abuse material.
According to the restaurant, investigators say Hanson worked at the Leawood restaurant from April 6 to April 23, during which time he intentionally contaminated food by urinating on it and rubbing his genitals on it while it was being prepared in the Hereford House kitchen, and then posted a video of him doing so online.
According to a criminal affidavit filed in the case, Hanson admitted to investigators that he committed the crimes and said he did so because men he met through apps such as Grindr and Sniffies asked him to record videos of them contaminating food.
Following Hanson’s arrest, the restaurant said in a press release that employees took immediate action and are cooperating with the investigation.
“[Hereford House] “In accordance with health department guidelines, we immediately took all precautions and procedures to thoroughly clean and sanitize the kitchen,” the statement said.
Leawood Police said test results showed Hanson did not have any infectious diseases that posed a risk to customers who may have consumed the contaminated food.
Inside Hereford House Restaurant in Leawood.
Hereford House’s marketing team and legal representatives did not respond to requests for comment on the matter.
Leawood police said they asked for answers from customers who had eaten at the restaurant during Hanson’s time there, and received hundreds of responses.
The restaurant is currently facing at least eight lawsuits.
The restaurant faces at least eight lawsuits in Johnson County District Court, including those filed by a Jackson County couple and a Clay County man.
The lawsuit alleges Hereford House caused the plaintiffs pain and distress when they became ill after eating at the Leawood location.
Bradley Honnold, an attorney representing five of the eight plaintiffs, said his clients allege Hereford House was negligent, but their main focus is on the restaurant selling tainted food to customers.
“This is a product liability lawsuit regarding the condition of the food,” Honnold told The Post. “What was sold was tainted food, and it is illegal in Kansas to sell tainted food. It’s illegal both in terms of the warranties that come with the food that innocent consumers purchase, and also in terms of product liability law, which says that if you sell a defective product, you’re liable for damages if the purchaser of that product is injured.”
The case has caught the attention of other local law firms. In a Facebook post in late May, Kansas City-based personal injury law firm Schaumburg, Johnson & Bergman urged customers who became ill after eating at Hereford House to contact the firm.
“Our teams are investigating reports of food contamination at Hereford House’s Leawood store,” the post read. “Your safety is our top priority and we are committed to seeking justice for those affected.”
This restaurant is a Kansas City area staple
Hereford House opened in Kansas City in 1957 and currently has four locations in the Kansas City area, including Leawood and Shawnee.
The original store in downtown Kansas City burned down in 2008.
The restaurant’s former owner, Rodney J. Anderson, and co-workers Vincent Pisciotta and Mark Sorrentino, were convicted and later sentenced to federal prison for intentionally setting fire to the landmark building to collect insurance money.
Hereford House is currently owned by Leawood Chamber of Commerce member Mary Holland, who purchased the restaurant in 2012 with her business partner Camelia Hill.
Hereford House is a member of Kansas City Originals Restaurants, a nonprofit independent restaurant association that works to sustain Kansas City’s independent restaurant scene, and the Greater Kansas City Restaurant Association, which represents local restaurants and provides training such as food safety education classes.
Since opening in the late 1990s, the Leawood store has been known as a local gathering place and a venue for civic events such as graduation parties, wedding receptions and regular meetings of the Leawood Chamber of Commerce and Rotary Club.
“This restaurant group has always been top-notch, highly respected and has a great history throughout the city,” Leawood City Councilwoman Lisa Harrison said.
Local authorities protect Hereford House’s reputation
Harrison said he empathizes with restaurants and their current situation because his family is involved in the food industry and he is a former food service employee himself.
“Unfortunately, we know that bad things can happen in any kitchen, and that’s just a fact,” she says. “If people don’t know that, they’re short-sighted.”
Since news of the alleged contamination at Hereford House broke, Harrison said he and other Leawood city council members have tried to support the restaurant in any way they can.
“When a restaurant group closes because of the actions of one person who is obviously no longer there, I think it’s really unfortunate that the egregious actions of one person could potentially cost 50 or 100 jobs,” she said. “We can’t let the reputation of such a great restaurant be tarnished because of the bad actions of one person.”
Leawood Chamber of Commerce President Stephenie Meyer echoed similar sentiments.
“A lot of people have reached out to me and asked how they can help, and I say, ‘Go and eat at the restaurant,'” she said. “People are interested in helping, supporting and giving back to the restaurants and owners who have given so much to our community.”
Is a rebrand necessary?
Still, the incident, and the ongoing legal dispute, have taken a toll on Hereford House’s reputation.
Some longtime patrons who became ill after eating at Hereford House told the Kansas City Star they will never return to the famous steakhouse.
Missouri Restaurant Association spokesman Trey Myers said that in order for restaurants to survive, they must make it clear that this incident was unusual.
“This is certainly one of those isolated incidents with a suspect who has no history or criminal record of being involved in these types of incidents in the past,” he said, “and judging by all the reports and documents that we’ve read about this situation, it appears that he committed these heinous acts purely for the enjoyment of it.”
While Myers praised the restaurant for cooperating with authorities and immediately instituting deep cleaning procedures, he said the restaurant needed to rebrand itself to emphasize safety and cleanliness to ensure customers knew something like this wouldn’t happen again.
“This is one of those deals where the entity has to go through a rebranding phase,” he said. “This is one of those situations where we have to coordinate with certain enforcement agencies to make sure the situation is resolved and that everyone is safe and everything complies with regulations. But this is just one of those deals where we wait for time to pass and see how it all plays out.”
What’s next?
Leawood investigators continue to urge anyone who ate at the restaurant between March 26 and April 23 and has since become ill to contact the Leawood Police Department by email at tips@leawood.org or by phone at 913-266-0696.
Hanson is being held at the Johnson County Adult Detention Center in New Century on $500,000 bail.
His next court date is scheduled for July 10.
This article originally appeared in the Johnson County Post.
