ATLANTA — Atlanta Police are looking for a man who appears to have been caught on video breaking into a well-known Buckhead restaurant.
The owner and executive chef of Buttermilk Kitchen, Suzanne Vizethann, said the man stole their safe and several thousands of dollars inside it.
"He took a rock and broke into our side door where our service station is, shattered all that glass," she said as she walked 11Alive reporter Paola Suro through the affected areas in the restaurant. "[Then he went to] where our cash register is. Luckily there’s no cash there but he took it, threw it on the floor, then once he realized he couldn’t get into there, he went straight back into the kitchen, our office is all the way in the back."
Suzanne said he then used one of their waffle makers to break into their office, where the safe was located.
"He grabbed [the safe], ran out the back door, dropped the safe, hurt himself or injured himself. He’s probably limping or maybe he broke his leg or his foot," she said.
Suzanne said he took the restaurant's safe with about $2,800 in cash and a stack of checks inside.
"I don't even care about the money and the damage, it's more about the inconvenience and how you feel violated," she said. "Fortunately no one was hurt, there was no altercation with the staff."
It all unfolded around 5 a.m. Tuesday morning, just 45 minutes after the cleaning crew had left.
All of this was captured by the multiple cameras inside and outside of the restaurant. The video also shows the man limping as he tries to drag the safe behind him, and get into the "getaway car," which appears to be driven by another person.
"We're very fortunate to have the whole community behind us," she said. "I can't tell you the amount of texts, DMs, we've gotten from people saying they're sorry and that they're with us. It's very encouraging to hear at a time like this."
She believes the man could be in his 60s, and said the video showed he was inside for about 15 minutes before being picked up by the other person, taking the safe with them.
Since the incident, their side door has been boarded up and inside it's business as usual. However, the restaurant had to delay its opening for about an hour today because of the theft.
"We did have to push our opening back this morning about an hour which is unfortunate we lost that business," she said. "But everyone was super understanding. Lucky for us we were able to continue service – we didn’t lose the whole day."
Suzanne opened Buttermilk Kitchen's doors in 2012. She hopes someone, somewhere can help them get answers. If you recognize the man, call Atlanta Police.