St. Petersburg’s Noble Crust closing temporarily after employee tests positive for COVID-19

St. Petersburg’s Noble Crust has temporarily closed after an employee at the restaurant tested positive for COVID-19.

The announcement was made on the restaurant’s Facebook page Wednesday afternoon and said the owners were informed of the exposure this morning.

“We want to ensure our guests that this team member contracted the virus through an isolated incident outside of our restaurant,” the post said. “No team member at our location has ever shown any symptoms or signs. Our entire staff is being immediately tested and will only return when they receive a negative result.”

The news follows a string of similar incidents reported at Tampa Bay-area restaurants and bars, where a growing number of employees are testing positive for COVID-19, prompting some restaurants to shut down while others remain open.

Noble Crust’s St. Petersburg location will reopen once the entire staff has tested negative and the Southern-Italian restaurant is treated to a “professional deep clean,” the owners said. Nothing has been reported at the local chain’s Wesley Chapel and Carrollwood locations.