Whipped Cream Difficulties

To paraphrase something Hunter S. Thompson never said, “The restaurant business is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs. There’s also a negative side.”

Take, for example, the strange case of Eric Farber.

Mr. Farber owns (owned?) a place called Plus Four Dining in Georgetown (now closed). Plus Four was on the first floor of a building; the second floor of the building is occupied by the Landmark Tavern, and Landmark’s owner also owns the building itself.

The owner was also trying to evict Mr. Farber, charging default of the lease, insufficient property insurance, and breach of an agreement not to disrupt Landmark’s business…

…according to the letter, which claimed that Farber had climbed a tree next to the upstairs balcony “and encouraged the patrons on the balcony to come downstairs for better prices.”

Farber had stopped people entering the building and encouraged them to go to his restaurant rather than the Tavern, according to the letter.

Farber was appealing the eviction, claiming that Landmark’s customers were too loud for his customers and that the ceiling insulation was inadequate, as well as water leaks and drainage problems in the building. Farber also claims that the owner refused to make repairs and “fabricated the claim that Tenant owed Landlord money for the electric bill.” Farber also apparently filed complaints against the Landmark with TABC.

Sounds like a fairly standard dispute, right? Up until 3:30 AM last week, when Farber was found on the street with a bloody face and no pants.

In a curious coincidence, the police were also called out to a criminal complaint at the Landmark…

“Someone had gone on the roof of the building and apparently taken some lights and satellite dishes and thrown them off the building,” [Georgetown PD Captain Kevin] Stofle said. “We haven’t come into contact with anyone who knows for sure what happened. We don’t know if Farber was up there and fell off.”

Curious. Curious, indeed.

(Hattip: Mom.)