Sarah Palin accused of violating COVID rules by dining indoors

(CNN) — A Manhattan restaurant is looking into its enforcement of vaccine requirements for indoor dining after Sarah Palin allegedly dined there indoors while unvaccinated.

Palin is in New York City for her defamation trial against the New York Times, which was delayed after she tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday morning.

“She is, of course, unvaccinated,” said US District Judge Jed Rakoff who is presiding over the trial, according to Reuters. It is now expected to begin February 3.

An attorney for Palin declined to comment.

The 57-year-old former Alaska governor was seen on Saturday dining at a restaurant called Elio’s on Manhattan’s Upper East Side — something the restaurant’s manager Luca Guaitolini confirmed to CNN.

Guaitolini told CNN that he was not working that evening but was told by the manager who was on duty that he checked 150 to 200 vaccination cards that night.

“We are taking this isolated incident — an unfortunate oversight — very seriously. Elio’s adheres to and believes in the vaccine mandate, and all it is doing to protect our staff, regulars, and the dining public. My focus right now is on the safety of my staff who worked the floor that night, and on our guests,” Guaitolini said in a statement to CNN on Monday.

Current guidelines in New York City require people over the age of 12 be vaccinated in order to dine indoors. CNN has reached out to an attorney for Palin to comment on the allegation she dined indoors while unvaccinated.

A spokesperson for the mayor’s office said, “The Key to NYC rules were put in place to protect all New Yorkers — including the small businesses that power our city’s economy. Ms. Palin needs to respect small business workers and follow the rules just like everyone else.”