Local businesses and community members donated goods and their time Sunday to help downtown restaurant Cafe Berlin get back on its feet after an overnight break-in left it with few supplies and around $53,000 in damages.
According to Columbia Police Department spokeswoman Latisha Stroer, the police have yet to release much information about the case because the investigation is still underway.
The restaurant, which serves breakfast and lunch and puts on concerts and shows at night, was left in shambles after the break-in. According to kitchen manager Jamie Davis, much of the equipment was destroyed in what seemed like an attempt to keep the restaurant from opening the next day.
“They cut the cables to our refrigeration units, they dumped milk and cream and sugar all over the sound board, which was like a $10,000 soundboard, and they stabbed the evaporator inside the walk-in,” Davis said. “A lot of things along those lines, going through and breaking some of the most valuable stuff, and pretty targeted at the stuff that would keep us from opening for a day, basically.”
Various local businesses helped Cafe Berlin by donating supplies. Pizza Tree brought pizzas for the volunteers who cleaned up on Sunday. Logboat Brewing Company replaced the kegs that were left running after the break-in so the bar could be open on Sunday. Lakota Coffee donated 25 pounds of coffee for brunch on Monday.
“We’re all mom and pop shops, you know,” said Andrew DuCharme, general manager of Lakota Coffee. “We’re not corporate. I got burglarized a couple of years ago, and I had a tremendous amount of support from the community. That’s just the way I think it should happen.”
Davis, along with a majority of the staff, believes the attack had something to do with the way in which the restaurant operates.
“Our way of doing things around here is very much inclusive of marginalized communities and artists,” Davis said. “So, it felt to a lot of us like it was targeted toward that, targeted towards our audience.”
Despite the damages, the restaurant was able to open for a successful show on Sunday night.
“I was playing in that show on Sunday,” Davis said. “It went really well. The community support behind us was outstanding. I mean, the house was packed. We’ve hardly ever had a Sunday show that has been that crowded.”
Although a few repairs still need to be made, Davis is confident in the restaurant’s ability to continue service as if nothing happened.
“Nobody was really responding with outright rage and anger,” Davis said. “I mean, yeah we were all upset, but we were just focusing more on getting back on our feet and not staying down, not letting the community see us down.”
_Edited by Madi McVan | mmcvan@themaneater.com_