It is definitely not TGIF for Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams. After closing and recalling all of its products at the end of April due to a listeria outbreak, the shops re-opened in mid-May, assuring customers that the issue had been resolved. Well, it happened again: this morning, Jeni's announced that they found listeria in its product kitchen again, and that all shops are closed until further notice.
CEO John Lowe announced in a post on the company's website that the bacteria was discovered through routine swabbing as part of Jeni's monitoring program. "We stopped production earlier this week and have been investigating where and how it may have re-entered the facility," he wrote. "We have a theory and are testing that theory. We don’t yet have a timeline for the resumption of production." Lowe also mentions that they have been testing every batch of ice cream since the original outbreak, and can say with complete confidence that "all of the ice cream that has been served in our shops since reopening on May 22 has been safe and is 100% Listeria-free."
Jeni's has several Chicago locations and their first LA location opened this past March. All Jeni's shops nationwide will be closed until further notice. We're really rooting for these guys—they've had a rough couple of months, but their ice cream is certainly worth splurging on. In the meantime, may we suggest trying these new ice cream and gelato shops in LA or the best ice cream shops in Chicago instead?