Photo: Casa Ora / Instagram

It started with bikes in the hallway. Then two cases of avocados from the walk-in cooler went missing. A brisket, a phone, an iPad, as thieves became more brazen.

Then, on Wednesday morning, the owners of Michelin-recognized Venezuelan restaurant Casa Ora woke to discover their front door had been smashed in with a brick, the register stolen.

The latest break-in is the third the restaurant has faced in the last two weeks. It happened in the middle of Hispanic Heritage Month, and on a special day for the restaurant’s co-owners.

“It’s sad because I had a whole day planned for my wife today, it’s her birthday,” Casa Ora co-owner Ivo DĂ­az said, referring to Casa Ora pastry chef Rachel DĂ­az Pirard.

“But we’re safe, we’re alive, we’re thankful for that. I’m not even angry. I’m just like, alright, sh*t happens, you know.”

The first break-ins

DĂ­az said the restaurant first noticed things were going missing around September 20.

They checked the cameras and realized someone had found a way in through an emergency exit door, and had taken food and electronics from the restaurant on two separate nights.

Screenshots from the surveillance video. Image: Casa Ora

After dead-bolting the door, DĂ­az remembers telling his wife he was worried thieves might now try to find another way in.

“Once they’re in, it’s a vicious cycle,” he said. “This is what I was afraid of.”

On Wednesday morning, the pair woke up to a call from a friend. The door of Casa Ora had been smashed in, and the alarm hadn’t gone off.

Wednesday’s hit

After checking the surveillance footage, the DĂ­az family saw it all went down at 6:18am Wednesday morning.

In the video the thief, wearing a black hoodie with a crown on it, comes by the restaurant on 148 Meserole Street and looks inside.

“He comes back again and slams the glass and then he leaves for like 5 seconds, making sure nobody saw him, then comes back pulls the register out, and broke a few bottles behind the bar. The whole thing took 15 to 20 seconds,” Diaz said.

The restaurant said, from the video footage, the three break-ins appeared to be done by three different intruders, all using different techniques.

The impact

In an Instagram post Wednesday morning, Casa Ora told its followers about the break-ins and their impact.

“We are #smallbusiness #immigrantbusiness and #womanowned business and every hit is not being billed to a corporate account, but rather our own saving an ultimately affects our ability to pay our staff,” it said.

The restaurant has started a GoFundMe to try to recoup some of what is lost, and to raise funds to get a gate installed to protect the property and replace its security system.

DĂ­az said the restaurant had spent a lot through the pandemic just to survive, and the extras required just to keep the restaurant secure were expensive.

“But people don’t have to go to the GoFundMe,” DĂ­az said. People can also support us by coming in, making a reservation to do our Heritage Month Tasting menu, just come support us.”

A Brooklyn treasure

Casa Ora is a family-owned restaurant run by husband-and-wife duo DĂ­az and DĂ­az Pirard, and DĂ­az’s mom Isbelis DĂ­az, the executive chef.

It’s named after their daughter, Ora.

Since opening, Casa Ora says it is the only Venezuelan restaurant to ever receive a Michelin Plate, a category Michelin launched to showcase restaurants that “simply serve good food.”

To support its community and heritage, Casa Ora donates a portion of its revenue to Fe y Alegria, a nonprofit that supports Venezuelan families forced to seek refuge due to a lack of basic resources.

Jessy Edwards

Jessy Edwards is a writer based in Bushwick. Originally from New Zealand, she has written for the BBC, Rolling Stone, NBC New York, CNBC and her hometown newspaper, The Dominion Post, among others.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published.