A person broke into the storage unit of Republic Cantina, a Tex-Mex restaurant & cafe in Northwest D.C., on Friday night and took jugs full of hand sanitizer, along with cleaning products, the Washingtonian reported.
The burglar entered the unit, which is in the basement of an apartment building, but did not steal liquor and other items that were sitting there and are worth thousands of dollars.
“It was relatively sophisticated as these things go. The person planned ahead and brought bolt-cutters and cut through what is a pretty robust security cage,” said Chris Svetlik, the owner of the restaurant.
Svetlik added that he found what the burglar stole “kind of heart-wrenching.”
Republic Cantina is among the D.C. eateries suffering from the economic fallout of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
The restaurant opened in July 2019 and has been receiving good reviews from residents ever since (with a 4.5 Yelp rating out of 5), as well as from food critics for adding another dimension to classic Tex-Mex.
It recently announced on its website that it closed for dine-in business “in light of public health concerns around the coronavirus.”
The staff is still offering take-out service, which you can order online and via phone call (202-997-4340). There is also the option of purchasing gift cards for your loved ones.
The place is now operating between 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m. daily.
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