Did this chain restaurant by Sunrise Mall stay open after an employee contracted COVID-19?
A Red Robin Gourmet Burgers & Brews employee tested positive for COVID-19 at the restaurant chain’s location across from the Sunrise Mall, a company spokesperson confirmed to The Sacramento Bee on Sunday.
The restaurant by Citrus Heights’ primary mall was sanitized according to Centers for Disease Control guidelines and employees who felt unsafe were allowed to stay home, according to an emailed statement by Yakima, Wash.-based Red Robin. The statement made no mention of other employees being tested.
“We received confirmation that one Team Member at our Citrus Heights location tested positive for COVID-19,” Red Robin’s statement said. “The health and safety of our team members and guests is always our top priority. We followed the proper protocol recommended by the CDC, and the restaurant was sanitized thoroughly. All employees were notified and instructed to stay home if we required them to quarantine or they felt uncomfortable coming into the location.”
Red Robin declined to answer questions about when the employee tested positive or if the Citrus Heights location at 7990 Greenback Ln., Suite J ever closed for business. A popular Reddit post on the r/CoronavirusSAC subreddit on July 3 said the restaurant never closed.
At least six Sacramento County restaurants temporarily closed last week following employees’ positive COVID-19 tests or possible exposure to someone with the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus. Midtown Sacramento restaurant and bar Kupros Craft House also closed Monday after an employee tested positive.
Nearly 6,200 people have been infected with coronavirus in Sacramento County – including 232 in Citrus Heights – and 92 people have died since the start of the pandemic, according to county data.
More than 3.3 million people across the United States have tested positive for COVID-19 as of Monday, according to The COVID Tracking Project and Johns Hopkins University CSSE, and more than 135,000 have died. Hospitalization rates locally and across California have risen over the last month.
This story was originally published July 15, 2020 at 12:49 PM.