First Coast Mexican Restaurants without Cilantro?

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- The nationwide outbreak of salmonella poisoning has a new focus.

After weeks of warnings about tomatoes, the CDC says the culprit could be something else in your pantry.

900 people have gotten sick in 40 states since April, with more than 100 people having to be hosptalized.

The source of the sickness has baffled experts. Investigators believe one or more of these ingredients could be the source: jalapeno and serrano peppers, cilantro, scallions, and onions.

Phyllis Rodgers eats at Mexican restaurants a lot.

"Mexican restaurants, probably once a week, at least," said Phyllis.

Order just about anything on the menu, and you can't miss.

"Refried beans, refried beans, yeah, and the chips, and the salsa," said Phyllis.

But it could be just about everything on the menu at Mexican restaurants everywhere that's effected.

The salmonella outbreak has the FDA taking ingredients like tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, and cilantro out of shipments to the U.S., making the one business that consistently uses all those, very nervous.

"Choreta chicken or choreta beef, beans, rice, pico de gallo, guacamole, steak fajitas, all the fajitas we sell, and basically 90% of our menu has vegetables," said Juan Valencia, whose family owns the Mi Toro Mexican Restaurant in Mandarin.

Valencia's family has owned the Mi Toro Mexican Restaurant in Mandarin for 11 years.

He says it's those great ingredients that keeps people coming back for more.

"It's freshly prepared every day, it's not canned, or anything like that, and it's really inexpensive," said Valencia.

Low prices make Mexican food all the more appetizing in a lagging economy.

"We basically keep our customers coming in pretty much two times a week, the way the economy is right now," said Valencia.

But Valencia says now it's time to consider their options if they can't get their main Mexican staples.

Valencia says he may consider growing a garden of those ingredients on his own.

Whatever happens, Phyllis says she won't be kept away. Valencia says the ingredients they have at the restaurant now will only get them through the week.

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