THE OWNERS of a restaurant whose £10,000 food van was stolen have told of the damaging impact it will have on their business.

SALT - Street Food Kitchen & Bar, on Grange Road in Darlington, has become a firm favourite around the region for its street food and burgers.

The business adapted during the coronavirus lockdowns last year and bought a food truck to take their popular food on the road.

However, the truck has now been reported stolen after thieves struck on Wednesday night at around 10pm.

The truck's owner, who did not want to be named, said it was stolen from a driveway in Harewood Grove, near South Park, Darlington.

The food truck is said to be valued at around £10,000, including the gas grills and catering equipment inside.

And the business is now coming to terms with the impact it will have on revenue and its services in the future.

The Northern Echo:

Read more: Police urged to take town's 'laughing gas' issue seriously

"We used it for events and we have now had to cancel weddings which would have brought in lots of money because of it," the owner said.

"Now we don't have any access to another source of revenue which will affect us.

"We're reluctant to purchase something like that again because it might be stolen again.

"It's really annoying and frustrating. We have our takeaway and restaurant side of the business till so it's not the end of the world but we have all got family and any income is used to provide for them."

Durham Constabulary said it was investigating the incident. 

"I was letting out my dog at the time and I heard voices nearby that seemed like they weren't from this area," the owner added. 

"My first instinct was to look over because I could hear a car engine running.

"Then I saw something was covered in black and realised it was the truck."

He said he believes the thieves towed the truck towards the Mowden Park Stadium and then turned off the A66 at Hurworth or Morton Park.

"They had no control over it when driving," he added.

Days before the incident he said two "suspicious looking" men had been spotted near the van when he returned home.

He said: "The other day I pulled into Harewood Grove and spotted two men near the van. Everything about it looked unusual and they looked like they'd seen a ghost when I came near."

The Northern Echo:

A spokeswoman said: "Police were called to reports of the theft of a food truck van from Darlington last night (September 9).

"The van was taken from outside of an address on Harewood Grove shortly after 10pm.

"Inquires are currently ongoing and an investigation is underway.

"Anyone with information is asked to direct message Darlington Police on facebook quoting incident number 465 of September 8."

Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

You can also follow our dedicated Darlington Facebook page for all the latest in the area by clicking here.

For all the top news updates from right across the region straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.

Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on newsdesk@nne.co.uk or contact 01325 505054