A group of thieves broke into a San Francisco ice cream parlor in the dead of night to steal a safe but ran off with nothing more than a bag of cookies.
That’s according to the owners of Mitchell’s Ice Cream, a 70-year-old Noe Valley institution at 688 San Jose Ave., which posted photos of the aftermath on Instagram Friday.
Mitchell’s has yet to return a request for comment. But on social media, the creamery’s owners said surveillance footage showed five men breaking into the shop’s front window around 3 a.m. Friday.
“We have cameras throughout the shop and outside, so we were able to see that they tried to steal our safe, which is securely bolted to the cement floor,” the Instagram post said. “They ran out of the store when our alarm sounded and the police arrived about 10 minutes later. We always leave our cash drawers empty and open, so in the end, they left with a bag of cookies.”
The loss, of course, amounts to much more than a few swiped sweets.
“What a mess they left behind,” the shop owners continued in their Instagram post. “Glass everywhere and crushed bags of cookies that they stepped all over when they entered.”
The San Francisco Police Department confirmed the ice cream parlor’s account. In an email to The Standard on Saturday, SFPD said that officers responded at 3:34 a.m. Friday to a report of a burglary at the San Jose Avenue shop.
“Upon arrival, officers observed significant damage to the front of the business,” police said. “Officers conducted a walk-through and spoke with one of the employees to determine the loss.”
No arrests have been made, SFPD added. But the case is still open, and police encourage anyone with information about the incident to call (415) 575-4444 with tips or text them with a message that begins with “SFPD” to TIP411.
Mitchell’s proprietors said the break-in should serve as a warning to other small business owners.
“Be sure to leave your cash registers open so thieves can see there’s nothing in them, and put all of your cash, checks, etc. in a safe that’s bolted to the ground,” they wrote. “And a good alarm system will make them leave in a hurry. They’re hitting our neighborhood (Rock Bar was burglarized about a week ago), so be careful!”
Despite the setback, Mitchell’s went back to business as usual soon after sweeping up the glass and boarding up the storefront.
In an Instagram post on Saturday, the shop thanked patrons for their support and said a new window is expected next week.
“We also wanted to let you know that we’re open for business as usual!” the post continued. “Due to the valiant effort of our day crew, everything was cleaned and straightened up yesterday morning and we opened at 11 a.m. as usual.”