MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Several nightclubs and restaurants were closed by the health department recently after inspectors say they found multiple violations of the county’s health directive.
Businesses that were closed for 14 days were In Love Memphis, The Statuz Club, The Blue Night Club, Comma’s Lounge and The Menu Nightclub, after inspections conducted Jan. 23, according to the health department.
At least three of those businesses, In Love Memphis, The Statuz Club and The Menu Nighclub, had previously been cited by the health department, according to previous reports by WREG. In Love and Menu were temporarily shuttered in September, Statuz Club in December.
Club In Love was the site of a party called the All Black Affair that drew major scrutiny from county leaders back in December after videos showed a lack of mask wearing and social distancing. The director of the health department said the party should’ve been shut down by inspectors who visited at least twice.
Curtis Givens, owner of In Love Memphis, responded on his Instagram account by calling the closure “ridiculous.”
He wrote: “This is pure harassment against us and other restaurant and bars. We do everything in our control to follow all guidelines. We write the names and numbers down of all patrons coming through the door for contact tracing, everyone must have a mask on before entering, we check temperatures, we have signs up asking people not to stand at bars, we make announcements to keep your mask on when not eating or drinking and we control our capacity.”
The locations may petition to reopen after submitting plans for coming into compliance with the health directive, and each establishment was given instructions on how to submit their plans, the health department said in a release.