SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The freezing cold temperatures are behind us, but one restaurant is still feeling the affects of it. Amici, which is located off South Campbell Avenue, had a frozen pipe burst over the weekend which flooded the restaurant.
“Our general manager and two chefs heard an explosion and what they said sounded like a fryer boiling over,” Owner Thor Bersted said. “They came running out here to find the entire main dining room just raining and the ceiling tiles and mass amounts of water coming down.”
Bersted said the water spilled out from the restaurant and onto Campbell Avenue. The pipe burst 50 minutes before the restaurant was scheduled to open on Saturday, Bersted said.
“We had a full night’s schedule completely booked on reservations,” Bersted said. “It was at the moment overwhelming. We had PuroClean in here within an hour and 50 minutes of when it happened.”
Bersted said the damage comes during a difficult time of year for restaurants.
“January is the hardest month for all locally owned restaurants,” Bersted said. “Everyone from top to bottom. [It’s the] slowest month, period.”