Colorado Restaurant Packed On Mother’s Day Shutdown By State Health Officials

A Colorado restaurant that reopened for full service on Mother’s Day in defiance of state rules banning sit-down dining was shut down Monday and had its license suspended indefinitely by health officials. The restaurant had opened without practicing proper social distancing, mask-wearing protocols or other the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state guidelines. 

The video shot and posted by Colorado Community Media showed large crowds of people congregating Sunday at the C&C Breakfast and Korean Kitchen, in Castle Rock, which is located about 25 miles south of Denver. The video shows that almost every seat in the restaurant was occupied, people lining up outside and almost no one was wearing a mask. The clip also shows one anonymous Coloradan woman, waving her hands and signaling a thumbs-up, while screaming an excited “Yay! Woo-hoo!” 

The Tri-County Health Department, whose jurisdiction includes Castle Rock, closed the restaurant Monday due to the violations. The agency also said in an order Monday that the restaurant must remain closed until a further review is conducted on its compliance with the state’s coronavirus orders.

Gov. Jared Polis (D) had issued a statewide “stay at home order,” closing restaurants and bars in mid-March.

The move by C&C Breakfast and Korean Kitchen owners April Arellano and her husband Jesse to reopen the restaurant for the Mother’s Day brunch comes amid Polis easing policies for opening the state.

Polis had just lifted his level one “stay at home order” for most of the state to a less stringent level two “safer at home” order last week. 

Under the “safer at home order,” Coloradans are encouraged to remain at home but are not required. Nonessential businesses have reopened but are required to enforce social distancing measures and only allow ten patrons in at a time — also, restaurants and bars remain restricted to takeout and delivery only. 

The health department said that it had warned C&C Breakfast and Korean Kitchen Friday not to open its dining room. 

“It is disheartening that this restaurant has chosen to move ahead of the public orders and not even consider implementing best practices to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” John Douglas Jr. of the health department said in a news release.

Polis said in a news conference Monday that he was “disappointed to see people and businesses actively breaking the law.”

Article by Emily Bevacqua