CLIFTON HEIGHTS, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — A newly opened restaurant in Delaware County was vandalized less than a day after its grand opening, but the owner said that won’t stop her from keeping things cooking in the kitchen.
Topaze Bryant opened Mrs. B’s in Clifton Heights earlier this month, with a menu she said has patrons coming back for more.
“We do fried catfish, turkey wings, baked mac [and cheese], greens, everything soul food, comfort food,” she said.
Bryant celebrated her restaurant’s official grand opening last Sunday. “It was a really good turnout. Everyone came out. It was fun,” she said. “I just feel like the community supported me so much, and it was a great time.”
But when she went to open up Monday morning she saw her front glass door shot out with what authorities said were BB pellets. “The main entrance door, that’s pretty much ruined. I have to get that fixed,” she said. “The cops said they’re going to see who did it on camera.”
Bryant knows there are a lot of hiccups new business owners face, after the long journey towards opening their doors. The road started for Bryant in 2016, when she found herself struggling with anxiety. Cooking became an emotional outlet for her, and soon after, her food began to take off in popularity.
“Everybody started buying my baked goods,” she said. “After a while, people started asking me to do catering, so pretty much, I just turned my pain into profit.”
Nearly a decade of cooking culminated this month in the opening of Mrs. B’s. “I just feel like it’s something God gave me, because I never really thought I was going to have a restaurant,” she shared.
Bryant said her doors will remain open and she’ll continue to serve the community. She hopes the police find who committed this crime and bring them to justice.
“I’m not going to let anything stop me,” she said. “Me and my team, we’re going to keep pushing and moving forward.”