Popular Puerto Rican restaurant temporarily closed after SUV plows into it

One of Rochester’s most popular Puerto Rican restaurants is temporarily closed after an SUV plowed into it late Thursday night. Around 11 p.m., officers from the Rochester Police Department responded to El Pilón Criollo , 973 N. Clinton Ave., for a burglar alarm. It actually was caused by the SUV striking the restaurant building after the driver left the northbound lane.

Police did not say what caused him to do so, but that he was the vehicle’s only occupant and was not injured or ticketed.

“The damage to our dining room is incredible,” said Alejandra Brown, who owns the business with her two sisters. “Everything is just covered in rock and dust and glass.”

They are going to talk with the city about whether they could seal off the kitchen and prep areas, which were untouched, and serve food out of the back of the building. “That would completely save us,” she said.

Otherwise, they won’t be able to reopen until an insurance payment comes through and repairs are completed.

Meanwhile, “We’re just trying to stay positive,” she said. “We have a great support system. Our customers are offering support, along with family and friends. We’re just taking it step by step. That’s all we can do.”

About El Pilón Criollo restaurant in Rochester NY

The siblings took over El Pilón Criollo in June from their mom, Zury Brown, after she retired.

Brown grew up in Puerto Rico. She worked for the Rochester City School District for 18 years and earned extra money to pay for her daughters’ dance lessons by making lunches that she sold to co-workers.

She opened El Pilón in a rented space on North Clinton and Avenue A in 2008.

Five years later, she moved to 973 N. Clinton Ave. It was the first new construction on North Clinton in more than a decade.

Reporter Marcia Greenwood covers general assignments. Send story tips to mgreenwo@rocheste.gannett.com . Follow her on Twitter @MarciaGreenwood .

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Popular Puerto Rican restaurant temporarily closed after SUV plows into it