After closing dining rooms for a couple of months at the coronavirus pandemic's outset, a growing number of reopened Milwaukee-area restaurants are again closing temporarily as employees test positive for COVID-19.
It's a situation even more restaurants could face in the future, as they wrestle with whether capacity restrictions, social-distancing requirements and other safeguards will be enough to allow them to operate safely — and at a profit.
The closings come as positive cases are growing among 20-somethings, who account for nearly a quarter of Wisconsin's COVID-19 cases, as of Monday. They're also a sizable demographic among employees of restaurants and bars.
At least five more restaurants closed voluntarily over the Fourth of July weekend after learning an employee at each had become ill: Stubby's Gastrogrub and Beer Bar, 2060 N. Humboldt Ave.; Brandywine, at W61-N480 Washington Ave., Cedarburg; sister establishments Honeypie, 2643 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., and Palomino Bar, 2491 S. Superior St.; and Who's on Third tavern, 1007 N. Old World Third St.
Last week, Steny's Tavern and Screaming Tuna sushi restaurant, both in Walker's Point, closed after positive COVID-19 tests.
Other restaurants closed voluntarily beginning in late May and also informed patrons on social media. Dining rooms had begun reopening in mid-May, after the state Supreme Court struck down Gov. Tony Evers' stay-at-home order.
Restaurants and other food operations don't necessarily have to shut down if COVID-19 is reported, and they're not obligated to disclose the illness to the general public.
A single positive case wouldn't force an ordered shutdown, according to Claire Evers, the City of Milwaukee's deputy commissioner of environmental health.
When the state identifies a positive COVID-19 case, it notifies the local health department of that person's employer. An investigative team at Milwaukee's Health Department would telephone a business if it has one positive case, Evers has said, to review the business' COVID-19 safety plan and possibly recommend changes.
If more cases emerge, the city would visit the business. And if the outbreak continues to grow, the city would order the business closed and require that all employees be tested and a mitigation plan be put in place.
"We look at the risk and see if it warrants a closure," Evers said in a recent interview. The department looks at factors such as what portion the ill employees are of the total workforce, whether they worked the same shift and in the same area, and what safety protocols are in place to protect workers.
The worry over sick employees and multiple reopenings exacerbate an already trying time for restaurants and bars.
Andrew Wilson, the chef-owner of Brandywine, said one employee called in sick last week with a symptom that wasn't a typical hallmark of COVID-19, not the usual fever, chills and body aches. The restaurant has a policy that anyone who's sick must be tested for the coronavirus, however, and cannot report to work until the test comes back negative. The test came back positive.
That employee is doing well now, Wilson said Monday. But the restaurant likely will be closed a week while all employees are tested, as were Wilson and his family.
Since reopening its dining room and patio, Brandywine had been taking the staff's temperatures on arrival, had all workers wear masks, sanitized the restaurant on schedule, reduced capacity and arranged tables at least 6 feet apart for social distance. "We were very committed," Wilson said.
"We did everything in our power to follow all the guidelines and do things the right way and still ended up with this happening," Wilson said.
Closing for a week will allow for test results to return, expected in three to seven days, but the Wilsons also will consider their next steps. The restaurant closed even before the lockdown was ordered by the state in March, and although it sold takeout, it didn't reopen to diners until early June.
It's possible the restaurant might return to its takeout focus and to seating on the patio only, Wilson said.
"We're kind of re-evaluating the process and figuring out what is the most safe," he said. The top concern is the safety and health of staff and customers, Wilson said, while still operating a business.
"That's been the puzzle," he said.
For restaurants, closing and reopening aren't a matter of simply hanging the "open" sign. It also means the expense and effort of getting rid of perishables and then buying fresh inventory again, as well as lining up and scheduling workers.
"It just kind of hit home," Wilson said after finding out his employee was ill. "It's real, and it's something we're all going to have to contend with at some point."
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Contact dining critic Carol Deptolla at carol.deptolla@jrn.com or (414) 224-2841, or through the Journal Sentinel Food & Home page on Facebook. Follow her on Twitter at @mkediner or Instagram at @mke_diner.
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