LAWRENCE, Kan.- With its many hot bars and restaurants, it's no surprise that Massachusetts Street can get pretty chaotic after hours. The commotion caused by many heavily intoxicated people being forced to relocate can become quite dangerous, causing someone like myself to wonder how this chaos affects other local residents and businesses.
One restaurant that is no stranger to the after hours madness is Pita Pit, located on 1011 Massachusetts Street. As a restaurant that stays open until 3 a.m., the employees on duty cater to their fair share of bar-goers looking for a place to continue the party.
Lorrin McElroy has worked at Pita Pit for about four months, and has repeatedly worked the closing shift. When asked about the mishaps that happen in the restaurant during bar closing hours, McElroy just sighs and laughs.
"Things always get spilled, trash cans get knocked over and trash goes everywhere. One time a drunk girl pushed our whole tray of cookies over." McElroy said.
"We used to have it really bad," says Phillip Peck, a manager at Pita Pit, "our signs would get stolen and people would throw-up everywhere."
Peck notes that these situations frequently happened the first year that Pita Pit opened in January 2006, but haven't happened much since.
With all the uproar these highly intoxicated customers bring, one wonders if it's even worth it.
"It's just part of the deal if you're going to be open that late." said Peck.
Obviously this restaurant aims to please when it comes to their customers, no matter what mayhem they have to undergo.