The Graceful Ordinary restaurant in St. Charles forced to close doors after employee tests positive for COVID-19

Less than a week after opening, The Graceful Ordinary restaurant in St. Charles has had to shut its doors because an employee tested positive for COVID-19.

“In the spirt of full transparency, we wanted to let you know that one of our employees has just tested positive for COVID-19,” the restaurant and building owners stated in a Facebook post on Thursday. “Although this individual was not experiencing symptoms, they received a positive result this morning following their most recent shift at The Graceful Ordinary on Wednesday, Nov. 17. Effective immediately, we’ve made the decision to close the restaurant until we are able to further assess the situation and collectively decide as a team that we are comfortable reopening. We’re currently notifying those who dined with us last night and all staff members who were directly exposed will be tested and are required to receive a negative result before returning to work. We are also continuing to clean and sanitize our venue daily and will begin to implement mandatory staff testing weekly.”

The Graceful Ordinary restaurant opened its doors to the public on Nov. 12. It is located in the former BMO Harris Bank building in downtown St. Charles.

Executive chef/owner Chris Curren owns the restaurant with his wife, Megan Curren, who also serves as the restaurant’s event sales manager. The couple lives in Hampshire.

Those with questions about the situation are being asked to call the restaurant at (331) 235-5803 or send an email to yourfriends@thegracefulordinary.com.

The Graceful Ordinary is the latest addition to the growing restaurant and entertainment scene in downtown St. Charles. The building is owned by Curt Hurst. Hurst and his son, Conrad, own Frontier Development, which has been involved in several projects in downtown St. Charles.

In 2019, Frontier Development purchased the Arcada building, which houses the Arcada Theatre and Club Arcada. The historic building first opened its doors in 1926, attracting such performers as George Burns and Gracie Allen.

Frontier Development also owns the building that houses Flagship on the Fox sports bar and Pollyanna Brewing Company in downtown St. Charles.