Kru, Ramen Kodaiko closed after employee tests positive for COVID-19

Kru Contemporary Japanese Cuisine will close for at least the next 11 days after an employee tested positive for COVID-19, the East Sacramento restaurant announced on Facebook on Wednesday evening.

All the high-end Japanese restaurant and omakase bar’s staff will be tested for COVID-19, the potentially deadly respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus. The restaurant at 3135 Folsom Blvd. will be sanitized according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines before possibly reopening July 12, according to the Facebook post.

“Despite our team’s best efforts to comply and commit to operating safely, this is an example of how anyone can be vulnerable to COVID-19,” the post read. “Please take this as a precaution to follow all social-distancing guidelines to ensure your safety and the safety of others. Please wear a mask, stay safe and understand we are just as committed to making sure we’ll be ready for you when we reopen.”

Born in China but raised in Sacramento, chef Billy Ngo founded Kru at 2516 J St. in 2005 when he was 24 years old. It slowly emerged became one of the area’s preeminent restaurants, earning a perfect four stars from then-Sacramento Bee dining critic Blair Anthony Robertson in a 2013 review.

One of Ngo’s other restaurants, Ramen Kodaiko, said it would also close until all staff had tested negative in a Facebook post. Though no Ramen Kodaiko employees have tested positive for COVID-19, some work at both restaurants. Ngo’s other restaurant, Fish Face Poke Bar, remains open for takeout.

Sacramento County banned indoor restaurant service Wednesday for at least the next three weeks at California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s request amid a recent spike in COVID-19 cases. Staff at The Zebra Club, Paesanos, Chevys On The River, Out Of Bounds Kitchen & Biergarten all tested positive within the last two weeks.

This story was originally published July 1, 2020 at 7:28 PM.