Palin Returns To UES Restaurant Despite COVID Diagnosis: Reports

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Beware, Upper East Siders: there's a new disease vector stalking the neighborhood, and her name is Sarah Palin.

Palin, the former Alaska governor and vice-presidential nominee, dined outdoors at Elio's restaurant Wednesday night — just three days after her COVID-19 diagnosis became publicly known — according to multiple reports, including by Gothamist and Mediaite.

That marks the second time Palin has eaten at the Second Avenue Italian eatery this week. On Saturday, before her diagnosis, the unvaccinated Palin was spotted dining indoors at Elio's — sparking outrage directed toward the restaurant, which admitted to failing to check for her vaccination card.

Palin came to the city for the trial of the defamation lawsuit she filed against the New York Times, which centers on a 2017 editorial that accused Palin of inciting the 2011 Arizona shooting of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. (The Times eventually issued a correction, saying "no such link was established.")

Palin's COVID case was revealed by a judge on Monday, announcing that it would force the trial's start to be postponed until Feb. 3.

City Hall spokesperson Jonah Allon told patch in a statement that Palin had "shown a complete disregard for the health and safety of small business workers and her fellow patrons.

"The city offers multiple resources to support isolation for those who test positive for COVID-19, and we encourage Ms. Palin to join the 98 percent of New Yorkers who report they have followed guidance on isolation and have helped New York City stop the spread," Allon said.

In a statement to Gothamist, the manager of Elio's said that Palin had returned on Wednesday "to apologize for her previous visit," adding that her outdoor visit had been "in accordance with the vaccine mandate."

Meanwhile, the manager of Campagnola — another Italian restaurant a few blocks south — told Gothamist that Palin had eaten there on Tuesday. Palin, meanwhile, has insisted that she feels "absolutely normal."