Nightmare on Main Street: Monroe restaurant vandalized

MONROE — After getting out of the hospital, the last thing Sandy Adkins expected Thursday morning was to find someone had broken into her business.

The owner of Main Street Cafe in Monroe was met by a culinary nightmare when she opened the door.

She shared photos of the scene on Facebook. Scattered across the floor were upturned cookware and splattered eggs, onions and tomatoes, cheese and mushrooms. Dish soap had been poured onto the tables, napkins and silverware, Adkins wrote. The cash register and card reader were broken.

Whoever broke in also stole money, took a TV and emptied the fridge and freezer.

Adkins said the timing was unfortunate. The winter was slow for business, and more recently she had to close the cafe off and on while she recovered from hand surgery.

“My customers I’m sure are kind of getting sick of it. They’re not sure if we’re going to be open or not,” she said Thursday.

By that afternoon, though, the mess was gone. People dropped by to help clean up, mop and haul away the garbage, Adkins wrote in a Facebook post.

Adkins wrote she felt “truly blessed” to be part of the Monroe community.

The shop was open for business as usual by 7 a.m. Friday, in time for customers to enjoy the restaurant’s homey offerings of pancakes, waffles, eggs and breakfast meats.

Because the card reader had been broken, people could only pay with cash, according to an online fundraiser.

Adkins bought the restaurant in 2016, when it was called The Hitching Post, after her previous restaurant burned down.

Monroe Police Department spokeswoman Debbie Willis said no suspect has been identified in Thursday’s burglary.

Zachariah Bryan: 425-339-3431; zbryan@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @zachariahtb.