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BUSTI – After being closed for months due to the pandemic, a popular Chautauqua County restaurant has once again shut their doors, this time for cleanup after vandals broke into the establishment this week.
Debra Schuyler, owner of Schuyler’s Country Kitchen, says she was overwhelmed when she walked into her Town of Busti restaurant Wednesday morning, finding her small business trashed.
“There was damage to my computer, my credit card machine, there was honey all over, fire retardant, silverware all over the floor,” explained Schuyler, who believes a group of youngsters got in via the window, where her kitchen air conditioner was installed. “Not a lot was stolen, so I don’t think it was a break-in to get food, or what have you, it was just to do some damage.”
Her restaurant, which just recently reopened after it was closed due to the pandemic, will be closed for around two weeks as Service Master, a professional cleanup company, handles the mess.
Financially, insurance is expected to cover damage costs, however Schuyler says this is her busiest season, which will set back their projected revenue for the year.
“I mostly worry about my employees, because they have bills to pay,” said Schuyler. “I’m going to do everything I can to make sure they are taken care of, because we’re a family.”
As for those responsible, Schuyler says, “they really don’t understand the devastation of what they did, to not only me, but my customers.”
Police, Schuyler tells us, have launched an investigation, taking fingerprints from the scene.
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