Co-owner killed at iconic Charlotte burger place where customers felt like family
A co-owner of Charlotte’s beloved Brooks’ Sandwich House, Scott Allen Brooks, was shot and killed at the restaurant early Monday morning, police say.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police say they were called to a shooting at the walk-up restaurant on North Brevard Street in the NoDa neighborhood at around 5 a.m. Officers say they found a man who had been shot and killed.
Brooks, 61, co-owned the restaurant with his twin brother, David. Police offered a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest of a homicide suspect.
The unassuming hole-in-the-wall restaurant, famous for its chili cheeseburgers, drew customers from all over town.
The restaurant was founded in 1973 by David and Scott Brooks’ father, Calvin “C.T.” Brooks Jr. As boys — Scott Brooks was five minutes older than his twin — their father would tinker with the chili recipe as the brothers watched television.
At lunch hour Monday, customers started to arrive as usual at the restaurant. Some who had heard the news dropped by to leave flowers on the door or at a table next to the building. Others came still expecting their favorite meal.
Caroline and Gravely Reid had come to the restaurant every Monday for years to order a hamburger or country ham sandwich. But they noticed the parking lot was unusually vacant when they pulled in.
At first, they wondered if it was a holiday. Then they saw the flowers.
“I cannot believe it,” Gravely Reid said. “What evil in this world.”
A neighborhood landmark in NoDa
In a rapidly changing neighborhood, Brooks’ stood out as a landmark. The establishment saw NoDa transform over the years from mill houses into expensive homes. Across the street, new homes worth half a million dollars had just been built, but Brooks’ Sandwich House was the same melting pot.
“You’d be in line with just about everyone here,” said John Craig, who attended Idlewild Baptist Church with Scott Brooks.
Earlier this year, the Brooks brothers had donated three acres in east Charlotte to Habitat for Humanity to build 28 to 24 affordable town homes.
Charlotte City Council member Braxton Winston said he had gotten to know Scott Brooks as neighbors who had become city partners and supported him as he became a public figure.
“These brothers — this family — has created something that is distinctly Charlotte and distinctly theirs,” Winston said. “When you come here, it’s an amazing feeling of community.”
Robert Clay said he had been a friend and a customer to the two brothers for over 30 years. He drove to the restaurant as soon as he heard the news from his wife, he said.
“I felt like we were something like family because I knew them for so many years,” he said.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police told Observer news partner WBTV that it appeared Scott Brooks was confronted by an assailant as he began his work day.
Police ask that anyone with information about the shooting call Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600 or 704-432-8477 to speak directly to a detective.
This story was originally published December 9, 2019 at 7:45 AM.
