Popular West Seattle BBQ Restaurant Goes Cashless After 6th Robbery in 2 Years

deleciousfood | July 27, 2024 | BBQ | No Comments

SEATTLE – A West Seattle restaurant is taking even more preventative measures after being burglarized at least six times in the past two years.

The operations manager says burglaries have gotten worse since the West Seattle location opened several years ago, with crime there increasing in 2023.

“We love West Seattle and we’re still here, going strong,” said Jeremy McLachlan, operations manager for Pecos Pit BBQ.

The team remains positive, despite the break-in that occurred last Sunday around 2 a.m. at the West Seattle stadium.

“Burglaries have become very serious,” McLachlan said.

He said the drive-in window had already been reinforced following one of the previous burglaries.

“It’s a wrought iron gate that we installed,” he said.

On Sunday, burglars broke a side window and dismantled the store’s safe, taking about $1,500.

“This time they decided to go through this window, which is a double-glazed window, and they broke it,” he said.

Brie Noble, a company spokeswoman, said the West Seattle location has been targeted six times in the past two years, and since 2020, there have been between 12 and 15 reported break-ins across all locations, including the Kent headquarters. The company’s food truck has also been targeted in the past.

“The city of Seattle has become very difficult for us. We have government mandates that increase all of our benefits and the wages that we pay our team members. Our occupancy costs are high. Now with these break-ins, it’s really difficult for us to operate a business in Seattle,” McLachlan said.

For now, signs are up warning customers that the West Seattle restaurant does not accept cash. McLachlan says a nearby Taco Time restaurant has also made the change.

“They only gave credit for the last year because they were burglarized so many times,” he said.

He thanks customers for their continued support and team members for their resilience.

“I want to congratulate my team because we came back after the break-in, we cleaned the windows, put wood in the windows and we were open that day,” McLachlan said. “No matter how tough things get sometimes, we persevere and keep going.”

Managers say just coming in to buy food at the West Seattle restaurant helps support them. Just remember to bring a credit card or cashless payment method.