A CAR crash caught on CCTV shows a family being mown down by an alleged drunk driver who blew more than triple the legal limit.

Brendan and Tina Paul were sitting with their sister along with their children opposite them when the 57-year-old Glenroy driver slammed his sourdough bread van into the Fresh Chilli Thai restaurant in Laverton shortly after 10pm yesterday.

But rather than slam on the brakes, the driver continued to accelerate before coming to a stop.

Mr Paul's sister was pinned and there were fears she had been killed in the immediate aftermath as the family of seven were pushed back into the restaurant by the out of control van.

Mrs Paul said there was just screaming as the van demolished the restaurant.

She said they feared the worst when they could not immediately find their sister, which panicked her nephew.

"A lot of screams and uncertainty…I thought she was dead under the van," she said.

And she also had words for the allegedly drunk driver, who blew an evidentiary reading of .179.

"I'm a mother of two and you nearly took that away," she said.

The couple's seven-year-old son copped a blow the chin in the lucky escape.

"He's a pretty tough egg," Mr Paul said.

Three family members were taken to hospital with minor injuries.

Rubble flew down upon diners and staff in the commotion as they ran for cover.

Police say the driver was travelling west along Aviation Rd when he lost control of the van, veering across the road and onto the median before hitting a concrete edged garden.

The car then lurched towards the restaurant and through the window.

He was arrested and questioned by police pending summons.