Business & Tech
Brooklyn Bar Broken Into Days Before Opening 'Soup Queen' Eatery
A GoFundMe has been set up to help the Troutman Street bar, which is the site of a new soup shop, according to the fundraiser.
BROOKLYN, NY — Neighbors are rallying to help a Brooklyn "soup queen" whose first official storefront was broken into days before opening.
Sarah Khoshaba — known for her pandemic-born online business "Soup Queen BK"— was getting ready to open her first storefront at Farewell bar on Troutman Street this week when the bar was broken into on Monday morning, according to the GoFundMe.
The burglar ran off around 6:45 a.m. that morning with $400 in cash, the bar's "point of sale" electronics and other equipment after breaking three padlocks and the front glass to get into the business, according to police and the GoFundMe.
Find out what's happening in Bed-Stuyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The break-in has left Khoshaba struggling to meet her slated opening date on Friday, organizers for the fundraiser wrote. The storefront will be called Gunthers BK.
"Any help/donation possible would be appreciated to make sure that can still happen," wrote Brianna Burt, a friend of Khoshaba and patron of Farewell who started the fundraiser.
Find out what's happening in Bed-Stuyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Farewell Owner Daniel Teran told Patch that the break in left around $2,000 in damages to the bar space. Owners plan to donate any donations that exceed the cost of damages will be donated to charity, he said.
Police had still not caught a suspect in the break in by Tuesday afternoon, they told Patch.
Khoshaba began selling her small-batch soups at 101 Wilson Bar on Wilson Avenue in late 2020 and has been running through pop-ups and online orders since, according to her Instagram.
The bar where she will open the storefront, Farewell, is also a new addition to the neighborhood. It was opened by a team behind popular Bushwick spots like The Wheelhouse, Millie's Cuban Cafe and Alberto and Sons in the fall of 2020, according to a profile on Bushwick Daily.
It has become known for its trivia nights, open mics and other events.
"These businesses are beyond loved by their communities so let’s all come together to support them in this hard time," Burt wrote. "Any amount helps."
Find the GoFundMe here.
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