Yes, I'm sounding ancient once again.

From roadside burger stands, to fine dining establishments in the Bayview Village area of Toronto, to a trendy café style spot in Yorkville, I was able to cook for customers of varied tastes in very different environments.

At issue for me this week is the misinformation that abounds and is perpertuated by an ill-advised public and an under-educated media regarding the ongoing issues surrounding E. coli, that nasty little bug that keeps popping up in our midst.

E. coli (Escherichia coli) are bacteria which live in the intestines of animals, including humans. The presence of E. coli and other kinds of bacteria within our intestines is necessary to help the human body develop properly and to remain healthy. A necessary evil to be sure.

There have been a few incidents of late, one at a restaurant in North Bay and two right here in Niagara. For our purposes, let's just deal with the Niagara locales -- John Clark's M.T. Bellies in Welland and the Pullman family's Red Rooster Restaurant in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Both establishments voluntarily closed their kitchens when notified of the situation and fully cooperated with health department officials in the search for the cause of the outbreak, which has been widely rumoured to be traced back to a produce supplier, with U.S. lettuce as the carrier of the bacteria.

Now, it is not because those two places are near the top of my favourite-restaurants-in-Niagara list that I I sing the praises of both establishments and their owners.

Both owners are very good people that put heart and soul into their businessess and their respective communities through support of countless groups and organizations.

When I heard M.T.'s was one of the locations where patrons were affected, it was a sickening feeling as I know, as do his hundreds of customers, that John recently re-opened after a complete overhaul of the place. He has made an investment in his place and the community he serves and I am quite sure his customers will flock back to support him.

Just as it is hoped fans of the Rooster do in NOTL.

The point I want to make here centres on the misconception of where and how E. coli outbreaks crop up. I have seen reports in other Niagara media noting surprise that these two places were affected since they were so clean. The old "you could eat off the floor" adage comes to mind.

Cleanliness has very little to do with it. Recent outbreaks have all stemmed from produce, not equipment issues or surroundings. Obviously, nobody would want to tempt fate and we would all feel more comfortable in a spotless restaurant, but it is important to make the point that these two eatery's owners are also victims in this.

The dictionary defines a victim as "a person who suffers from a destructive or injurious action." Well, having produce delivered to your establishment that carries a potentially deadly disease certainly qualifies as injurious, to be sure.

To date, the health department has not announced what the contaminant is going right back to the source, but they should.

For the restaurants and the produce supplier it seems crucial for closure that everyone know as much about the true source as possible.

Two well-run, super popular restaurants and their owners deserve that type of follow through, as does the general public as whole.