Friday, February 22nd, 2008

Lie Down With Dogs, Wake Up With Fleas

And narsty Hep A:

Madonna and Ashton Kutcher are among the more than 700 patrons of the ultra-hip bar Socialista who are being urged by heath officials to get vaccinated for Hepatitis A after a bartender was discovered to be carrying the infection.

The barkeep, who recently returned from a South American vacation, was likely putting limes in mojitos and preparing other garnishes with bare hands — a not-uncommon shortcut of Health Code protocol in New York’s night spots. But the Health Department found another violation when they inspected Socialista this week: no soap for hand washing.

Hepatitis A is spread by putting something in one’s mouth that has been contaminated with traces of fecal matter from an infected person. Health officials issued a warning Thursday, asking anyone who visited the bar on Feb. 7, 8 or 11 to get a vaccination as a precaution. No additional cases of illness have been identified.

Socialista is the epitome of exclusivity: There’s a $600 minimum to sit down at one of its tables. Former Bungalow 8 doorman Armin Amiri spent an estimated $2 million to open the 1940s-Cuba-flavored West Village CafĂ© last May with a group of investors led by Giuseppe Cipriani and Sting’s wife, Trudie Styler.