AUBURN – Applebee’s restaurant in Auburn is closed to dine-in customers due to a COVID-19 outbreak among staff, but will remain open for delivery and takeout, according to a spokesman Wednesday.

The Maine CDC announced during its daily briefing on Tuesday that it was opening an investigation after three staffers at the Center Street restaurant tested positive for the virus.

Originally, a manager from the restaurant said it was open for dine-in Tuesday evening. However, a spokesperson for Applebee’s clarified Wednesday that the restaurant was closed to dine-in customers but open for delivery and takeout. The spokesperson said the response Tuesday was a misunderstanding.

Howard Taylor, area director of Applebee’s, said the team members who tested positive “will not return to work until a negative diagnosis is confirmed.”

He said the restaurant contacted the Auburn Health Department and the Maine Center for Disease Control “immediately upon learning of our three team members’ diagnoses” and that “out of an abundance of caution, we closed the restaurant and performed top-to-bottom disinfecting and sanitizing of all surfaces throughout the restaurant.

“We will continue our mandatory daily safety protocols, including team member health and temperature checks prior to each shift, mandatory face mask use for all team members, and thorough cleaning and disinfecting throughout every shift,” Taylor said.

Questions on Tuesday and Wednesday concerning what day restaurant management learned about the positive tests, what day the restaurant was closed for cleaning and what day it reopened for takeout service were not answered by Applebee’s officials.

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