DENVER — At Euro Crepes on South Broadway, its yummy thin pancakes are a staple for many.
"I have been here a little over eight years," owner Crystal Mdouari said.
Apparently, thieves love them, too, as they can't seem to get enough.
"Unfortunately, we have been hit a few times," Mdouari said.
In January 2017, a group was caught on camera breaking into the restaurant, ransacking it and stealing a register. Months later, another thief was caught stealing a charity donation jar full of cash.
"The times before this, I feel like we've been able to recover pretty quickly. This one, I feel like it's the most damaging, and that's why I'm the most upset about," Mdouari said.
That's because last week, thieves got away with the restaurant's catering trailer. It's the same one Euro Crepes uses at the South Pearl Street Farmers Market.
"I was chatting with another employee because we were going to hook it up and pull it over, and then I just stopped," she said. "It was like, "Wait a minute, where's the trailer?" And we're looking, and we're both in disbelief like, "Wait, what? Where's... what?""
The trailer contained thousands of dollars worth of cooking equipment. It's a second kitchen on wheels she and her staff no longer have.
"Just taking this step back and this jab, it really hurts us," Mdouari said. "That's obviously less revenue that we're gonna get every month, but also having to replace everything is, like, double, you know, taking back."
She worries about what this means for the future of her business, especially ahead of winter when it slows down. She hopes the community can step in and help.
"I personally would love to see us back at [the farmers] market before the end of season, and we only have seven weekends left. So, we're cutting it real close," she said.
Mdouari started a GoFundMe. As of Thursday afternoon, it had raised just under $1,000.
