True Smoke BBQ hit by thieves following an already hard year

Emily Cutts, Post-Bulletin, Rochester, Minn.
·2 min read

May 21—It's been a tough year for Brenda Janvrin's barbecue business True Smoke BBQ and it only got harder this week when a theft left the restaurant's large pit disabled.

"I felt violated, I was furious," Janvrin said. "This is my livelihood. This is what I do, this is what me and my kids do."

The restaurant, which has a traveling food truck and a brick and mortar location at 2040 Viking Drive NW, reported the theft Thursday after being closed for three days. Sometime between 7 p.m. Sunday, May 16, and 11 a.m. Thursday, thieves made off with three propane tanks as well as the regulators, hoses — everything that goes straight to the pit.

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"We are already ready struggling and that just made it worse," Janvrin said noting she will be locking the doors to the physical location on May 28. The food truck will remain.

The theft led to the business being closed Thursday as the food truck was already booked for a job. Janvrin said Friday morning she would be able to open that evening but would have limited offerings because the food truck is once again headed out for another job.

Janvrin posted about the thefts on the True Smoke's Facebook page and received an outpouring of support, many agreeing with her anger. The post also led to a connection with the manager of a propane company who Janvrin said is helping her to find a local option to get her pit back up and running while she waits for the special order regulator to come in from the factory.

"That was awesome, that was amazing of him to do that, otherwise I wouldn't know to do it locally. I've never had this happen before," Janvrin said.