Sovereign Faces Criticism For Staying Open Amid The Pandemic

PLAINFIELD, IL — A popular Plainfield restaurant is being condemned for not acting responsibly amid the coronavirus pandemic. Sovereign shut down early Sunday — and has been closed since — after the owners received reports about multiple employees testing positive for COVID-19.

"We are deep cleaning the restaurant and will resume normal business hours on as soon as the coast is clear. We will continue to communicate through our social media outlets," the restaurant announced in a social media post Tuesday.

The staff members who received positive results have not worked at the restaurant since Aug. 9 and the eatery is closed for extra precaution while the space is deep cleaned and sanitized.

However, despite their transparency, the owners have received several comments from Plainfield residents on their Facebook post where recent diners have condemned them for keeping Sovereign open during these times.

"You probably should of done the shut down as soon as there was the slightest indication of COVID-19. Especially when it sounds like there was multiple employees involved. Profits over people never benefits anyone," one diner commented.

The Tuesday post also said that former employees are sharing "grossly exaggerated" statements.

"We have always placed the safety and well-being of our employees and patrons first and continue to do so. This is a difficult time for all of us but if we work together we can get through it," the owners said.

Sovereign also has a loyal customer base who think they should be commended for relaying this information to the public.

"Everyone should actually feel better about dining there since they are upfront and honest about it," another diner said.

Another wrote on Facebook: "EVERY single business is having to deal with employees testing positive. I am one of your biggest fans and have only become more so during this time. Your transparency of telling us when it has happened and what you’re doing because of it is above and beyond what is required. When is the last time Walgreens or Target or McDonalds closed for deep cleaning due to a positive case? Never but this is not because they haven’t had positive cases I promise you! Keep on being awesome!"

This is the second time the restaurant has to shut down due to the coronavirus and the owners assure that they're "following all of the directives and advice given by the CDC and various agencies."

"Once we were made aware of an employee experiencing symptoms we immediately asked the employee to quarantine and be tested," the Facebook post said. "We are pleased to let you know the employees who did test positive are doing very well, and we wish them a speedy recovery."

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