An intruder shattered the glass front door of Brothers Restaurant on the 3000 block of W. Belmont Avenue in Chicago around 4:29 a.m. Monday, pulling out a sharp object and fighting with two men before spraying them with a chemical irritant and fleeing with cash from the register. One of the restaurant's owners was stabbed in the attack, and a cook was knocked unconscious, according to the diner's owners.
The break-in and the attack on the two workers were detailed by FOX 32 Chicago, which reported that the intruder broke through the glass door, demanded money, and fought with the men before grabbing cash and running off. A 37-year-old man suffered minor injuries and was taken by ambulance to Swedish Hospital, where he was listed in fair condition, while a 39-year-old man declined medical treatment from paramedics at the scene.
Owners Vow to Reopen Within the Week
In a statement posted to Instagram and cited in the same report, the restaurant's owners described the toll of the attack bluntly, saying it left “one of the owners stabbed and a cook knocked unconscious.” They added, “We hope to reopen this week,” after announcing the diner would stay shut for the day. “We will be closed today Monday, November 9th due to violent robbery this morning,” the owners said.
As of the report, authorities had not released a detailed description of the suspect, and no arrests had been announced. Police also had not specified the type of chemical irritant used during the robbery or the exact amount of cash taken, leaving several basic details of the case still unresolved.
Pattern of Break-ins Along Chicago's North Side
The Brothers Restaurant break-in lands amid a string of other property crimes that have rattled Chicago's North Side in recent months, though nothing in the record ties this case to those incidents. At least five businesses in the Edgewater and Lakeview neighborhoods were targeted in a string of smash-and-grab burglaries one Saturday morning, according to ABC7 Chicago, which reported that thieves broke or damaged glass windows and doors at each location, with items stolen from one of the businesses. Police told the station that no suspects were in custody and it remained unclear whether the burglaries were connected to one another.
Other Chicago streets have seen violent run-ins this year. In January, two Chicago men, Teryon Pittman, 24, and Robert Cooks Jr., 23, were arrested in the 2400 block of North Lockwood Avenue and charged with armed robbery after police said they targeted a concealed-carry holder in the 5200 block of West Montana Street; the holder fired his weapon, striking Cooks in the legs, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. In a separate case on West Belmont Avenue, a 17-year-old was taken into custody after robbing a Mexican restaurant at gunpoint in the 5400 block of West Belmont Avenue, ABC7 reported, after a concealed-carry holder there fired at the teen and missed.
For now, the focus on W. Belmont Avenue remains on Brothers Restaurant, where the owners are hoping to get the doors open again before the week is out. No further updates on the investigation or the condition of the two victims had been released as of the original report.
