Driver crashes into Mega Tom's Burgers restaurant in Apple Valley

A “disoriented” driver crashed into the Mega Tom’s Burgers dining room in Apple Valley and continued to speed until an employee turned off the vehicle’s engine.

The collision happened around 7 p.m. Tuesday at the popular fast-food restaurant located at 20781 Bear Valley Road, just west of Kiowa Road, an employee told the Daily Press.

About two hours after the accident, curious residents stood outside the building and took photos as two construction workers cleared debris and prepared to barricade the damaged portion of the building until repairs could be made.

The restaurant’s chef, Juan Meza, spoke to the Daily Press about the chaotic scene.

“An elderly man ran into the corner of our restaurant and into the dining room,” Meza said. “That accident got our full attention.”

Meza said that after the man crashed his vehicle into the southeast corner of the building, “he continued to accelerate” until a female employee ran to the vehicle, turned off the engine and checked on the driver.

Photos of the crash show what appears to be the front of a white four-door Cadillac partially inside the building.

“Luckily, there was no one at the other end of the restaurant,” Meza said. “We had four people sitting across the dining room, including one girl who was really shaken up.”

Restaurant employees helped the man until paramedics from the Apple Valley Fire Protection District arrived, according to Meza, who added that no one was injured in the incident.

Meza said the driver told employees he did not remember hitting the building.

An Apple Valley city inspector arrived and deemed the building unsafe for occupancy.

Mega Tom’s Burgers is temporarily closed until repairs are completed and the building is reinspected, Meza said.

You can contact Daily Press reporter Rene Ray De La Cruz at [email protected]. Follow him on X @DP_ReneDeLaCruz