Waukesha Pizzeria Owner Amazed At Support After Dumpster Issue

WAUKESHA, WI—A Waukesha pizzeria owner got an unpleasant surprise Wednesday after someone dumped a large amount of wood and packaging into his dumpster.

Erik Burgos owns EB's MKE Pizza Co. at 821 Meadowbrook Road in Waukesha. Burgos said all tenants are responsible for taking care of their own dumpsters, and he faced higher costs as a result of the illegal dumping.

Burgos posted a photo of the full dumpster on the Waukesha Eats Facebook page.

"Free pizza to anyone that can tell me who filled my dumpster. MKE Pizza Co, on Meadowbrook rd. We have to pay for this service, and as a small business, we can't afford to just empty our dumpster whenever someone feels entitled. Now I need to install locks and at $150 a piece."

Burgos heard from other business owners nearby who had experienced similar issues, he told Patch. Some suggested he install a camera, but he said he will instead install locks. "It is going to cost me $300 just to prevent someone from doing what they shouldn't be doing in the first place. It is maddening," Burgos said.

Thankfully, another small-business owner responded to Burgos' post with a generous offer.

Chris Tennessen, owner of CT Services, posted the following.

"Hi, I'm sorry this happened to you. I'm also a small local business that does junk hauling and I'd be more than happy to come and pick it all up for free! If you're interested please PM me & I could come tomorrow afternoon."

Tennessen told Patch he wanted to pay it forward and help someone who needed his services. If the roles were reversed, he would appreciate someone helping him out, he said.

To show appreciation, Burgos will give Tennessen pizza on the house. "My kids will also appreciate it as well," Tennessen said. "They love pizza."

Burgos said he was amazed at the response to his post, proof that other business owners understand what he is going through. "Small businesses supporting other small businesses makes owning a business worth it," Burgos said.

"We Had Something Here"

Prior to being a pizzeria owner, Burgos operated batting cages in New Berlin. For kids' birthday parties, he and a partner made pizzas. Customers started coming in for the pizza and not the birthday parties, he said. "We thought we had something here," Burgos said.

Soon, Burgos was selling the pizza product as a frozen item. After Burgos made some cold calls to bars and other establishments, Roundy's expressed interested in the pizza. "In the span of three months, we were in 70 Pick 'n Save stores and 15 to 20 bars in the area," he said. "It exploded from there."

Sometimes a business grows too quickly, and that's what happened to him, he said. "The wholesale market is tough to be in when you are making everything by hand," Burgos said.

So in 2015, Burgos opened a retail pizzeria in downtown Waukesha. He now crafts each pizza by hand, using the restaurant's own dough and fresh meat and vegetables.

The restaurant also offers fried goodies such as the Wicked Empizzada, which uses six different cheeses and dough that is deep fried.

EB's MKE Pizza Co. moved to Meadowbrook Road in 2020. The location has better parking both for customers and himself; downtown parking can be a nightmare, he said, and he received a few parking tickets. "If I had to park five blocks away," he said. "The pizza would get cold."

The restaurant offers carryout, delivery or dine-in service. For more information visit the restaurant's website or Facebook page.