A customer of a local Thai eatery apparently couldn’t wait to place her lunch order when she drove her car into the dining area.

Andaman Thai Restaurant, in the 500 block of South Elm Street, had its first guest Sunday around noon when a compact car smashed through the faux brick and glass storefront, according to a witness.

About a third of the car was in the restaurant, displacing tables and chairs before coming to a stop, the witness said.

The driver told a server at the restaurant that her shoelace had become tangled with the accelerator.

The cost of repairing the damages is unknown, but workers had to turn away customers Sunday as they boarded up the hole.

Other reports

A Denton police official said several cars around town were broken into Friday and Saturday. Although the burglaries took place throughout the city, police suspect a ring of burglars working together to snatch stereos and GPS systems from cars. 

1500 South Loop 288 — Two witnesses saw a man beating up his female passenger in a pickup Saturday evening, ac­cording to police reports.

Witnesses saw him veer into oncoming traffic before the truck came to a stop. Police responded to the report, but the man had escaped into a grocery store. The woman suffered some bruising and swelling to her face.

The man is expected to be charged with assault, said a police official.

—Candace Carlisle

Denton CountyCrime Stoppers will pay a reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to an arrest in these or other crimes. Callers will remain anonymous. Call 1-800-388-TIPS (8477).