3 Popular OC Restaurants Close Due to Employees Testing Positive for Coronavirus

Three Orange County restaurants abruptly closed this week after CBS-2 confirmed that employees tested positive for COVID-19, including The Boiling Crab in Santa Ana, along with Javier’s and A Restaurant in Newport Beach.

Orange County is a hotbed of COVID-19-related controversies in recent weeks. As restaurants and businesses reopened in late-May, an OC health officer resigned after attempting to require residents to wear face coverings, along with outcry from the public and county supervisors over the topic. Face coverings are now recommended, but not mandated. But according to the Los Angeles Times, hospitalizations in Orange County are on the rise.

Orange County’s Board of Supervisors noted the health department is working with Javier’s, where at least one employee tested positive for COVID-19. A Restaurant informed customers via Instagram that it will undergo a deep cleaning and test staff. The Boiling Crab resumed service on Wednesday afternoon.

In other news:

• Kismet Falafel permanently closed inside Grand Central Market. “We didn’t feel that we could sustain that business in the current climate,” co-owner Sara Kramer tells Eater.
• After nearly three months of shuttered dining rooms, more are resuming in-house dining this week. Redbird will take reservations via Tock for its main courtyard and two new outdoor dining areas. Broken Spanish is taking reservations on Instagram and Tock for dinner. East Hollywood’s Lolo Wine Bar also reopens Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 8 p.m. for patio this week for service.

• Westsiders, the venerable Mariscos Jalisco truck will park near La Cienega and Venice Boulevard this weekend. Check its Twitter or Instagram feeds for details.

• Barcito Bodega is Andrea Borgen Abdallah’s Downtown LA restaurant reimagined as a new shop with sandwiches, prepared goods like chimichurri, pantry goods, coffee, cocktails, and natural wines. The restaurant remains open for delivery and pickup.
• Four OC Restaurants Close As COVID Cases Jump [CBS-2]
• Half of Inspected LA Restaurants Aren’t Following Coronavirus Rules, County Says [ELA]