Forget the Gun Behind the Counter ...

Courtesy of

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - A Dutch cafeteria owner used piping hot french fries to fend off a gun-wielding would-be robber, police in the southern city of Helmond said Friday.

Fries, or "frites," are a national snack in Holland and Belgium, where they are deep-fried in oil and then salted and eaten with mayonnaise and chopped onions.

It was not known if the culprit, whose age was estimated at 16, was burned. He had threatened the owner and his wife with a handgun Thursday night, police said.

"He wanted money," a police report said. "But once he had hot frites coming his way, he decided he had had enough."

The fries were cooling in a pot when the owner threw them at the intruder.

Police described the youth, who is still at large, as "thin, white, and with a plump nose."