Category Archives: Restaurant

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Billings, MT – Sprinkler system limits spread of fire in bakery’s ventilation system

A Tuesday morning fire in the company’s Grand Avenue location damaged the main bakery operation, but it will only be temporary, said owner Bill Harrison. The small fire started in the ventilation system, he said. That triggered the sprinklers, and now a cleanup effort is underway. But the business is without bagels, for now.

The downtown Grand Bagel location gets its staple supply from the bakery at 2135 Grand Ave. Until everything is up and running again, the downtown shop will remain open with sandwiches, sweet rolls, biscuits and other menu items. The Grand Avenue shop is normally open on a limited basis to customers but will resume operation after the cleanup effort, Harrison said. The damage didn’t affect the front end severely.

“It was mostly isolated to our ovens area where our equipment is,” Harrison Said. He added that the main equipment will need cleaning and not replacement. They’re working with a damage restoration company, and a public health inspector was scheduled to check the space on Thursday, he said.

It’s unknown when full bagel baking will resume. Prior to the incident, business had been good, Harrison said. There had been growth in business at the Grand Avenue location, even with limited hours. The downtown business is steady. “Downtown is doing well,” he said. “It doesn’t fluctuate a whole lot. We appreciate the customer loyalty a lot.”

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Omaha, NE – Sprinkler system activates to help limit damage in overnight restaurant fire

A fire early Wednesday in the kitchen of an Old Market restaurant did not appear to cause significant damage. But the blaze set off smoke alarms and a sprinkler system and forced the evacuation of a nearby nightclub, according to initial 911 dispatch reports.

Roja Mexican Grill, 1212 Harney St., was closed when the fire was reported about 12:30 a.m. Police helped evacuate people from Parliament Pub.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

St. George, UT – Sprinkler system keep fire from spreading at Olive Garden restaurant

Dinner was interrupted late Friday evening when a fire broke out at Olive Garden Restaurant, triggering a heavy response from the St. George Fire Department and a quick evacuation by restaurant staff. No injuries were reported.

Just after 10 p.m. firefighters and emergency personnel were dispatched to a fire reported at Olive Garden Restaurant, located at 1340 E. 170 South St. George. Upon arrival firefighters observed heavy smoke coming from the rear of the building, St. George Fire Department Battalion Chief Darren Imlay said.

The heavy smoke activated the fire alarm initially, Imlay said, which also activated the emergency sprinkler system within a few minutes. The sprinkler system partially extinguished the fire.

“That system did what it was designed to do,” Imlay said.

Firefighters then entered and fully extinguished the area that was still actively burning, he said, and began ventilating the building to remove the smoke.

Meanwhile, the alarm sounded throughout the restaurant which initiated an evacuation, Imlay said.

“The restaurant staff did a great job of evacuating the customers safely, which resulted in no reported injuries during the incident,” Imlay said.

Many customers remained in the parking lot while firefighters extinguished the fire and some folks simply finished their meal or dessert outside as they watched the activity, Bryce Berry said. Berry was dining with friends when the alarm sounded. After being evacuated, the group gathered outside to watch the activity.

“Everybody was calm and just eating in the parking lot,” Berry said, “I’ve never been in a restaurant that caught fire before.”

Rhode Island resident Patrick Flanigan was dining with family and had just started ordering when the alarm sounded. At first they thought it was a false alarm, he said, but quickly realized it wasn’t a drill once they observed the staff going from table to table advising customers of the fire and the need to evacuate.

“It didn’t seem urgent at the time,” Flanigan said, “because they got us out so quickly.” 

It wasn’t until Flanigan and his family were out in the parking lot and saw all the smoke that they realized it was an actual fire, he said.

Flanigan and his family stopped at Olive Garden during a road trip to help his sister move, he said, adding they were on their way to Fort Collins, Colorado.

“Yes, we just pulled off the freeway to eat dinner here, before continuing on with the road trip,” Luva Flanigan, Patrick’s mother, said.

The fire damage was contained to a small service area, but there was also damage to the building from smoke and water, Imlay said.

The cause of the fire is unknown at this time. A full investigation will begin after the building has been completely cleared of smoke, Imlay added.

The Olive Garden management staff were unable to comment.

St. George Fire Department sent six fire engines and one ladder truck to the scene. Gold Cross Ambulance responded and remained at the restaurant in the event there were any injuries.

 

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Victoria, BC, Canada – Fire at Indian restaurant contained by sprinkler system

Patrons of Saaz will be able to enjoy the restaurant’s south Indian cuisine again, perhaps as early as June 30, an owner said Wednesday.

Co-owner Raj Gupta said building assessors and insurance adjusters are only beginning to look over the fire and water damage, estimated at $150,000. But Gupta said Saaz, at 535 Yates St., near Wharf Street, could reopen as early as the end of the month if damage is not too extensive and repairs and renovations can be completed.

Nobody was injured. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Gupta said he has received a number of calls from people sad to the hear news of the fire. “Hopefully, everything will come back,” he said.

The fire broke out just after 11 p.m. Monday, after the restaurant, which opened in 2013 and specializes in the cuisine of southern India, had closed for the night.

Price’s Alarms alerted firefighters to an alarm on the premises, while someone called 911 reporting possible flames. Victoria police also advised the fire department of flames seen from the rear of Bastion Square. Firefighters arrived and broke down a nearby door, smashing out the glass.

The restaurant’s sprinklers had activated and kept the fire contained, said Battalion Chief Dave Bicknell, and firefighters were able to extinguish the flames within minutes. The fire started in an area used as a busing station and for storage, he said. According to the Victoria Fire Department, the fire began in an area used as a busing station and for storage.

A few hours after the Saaz blaze, a small fire was reported at 701 Esquimalt Rd., across from Dalton Street in Vic West. Victoria firefighters responded about 3 a.m. to the report of smoke in the building. Upon arrival, crews found light smoke in the basement and the ground floor of the apartment building. It turned out a chair in a common area of the basement had been smouldering.

The apartment’s manager discovered it and moved it to the rear parking lot. Fire crews removed the smoke with fans. Residents were able to return to their suites once the smoke had cleared.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Pekin, IL – Sprinklers hold arson fire in check at popular restaurant and tavern

An employee of a popular restaurant and tavern allegedly asked another for advice on how to set it on fire — now he is charged with arson.

The combination of flaming stove burners and cooking oil, left atop the stove and spread on walls, caused minor damage to Goodfellas Pub & Pizza on Wednesday, though the business remained closed Monday.

That obvious evidence of arson and his own statements led police on Friday to arrest Scott Sutherland, 34, of Pekin. He was charged in bonding court Sunday and remained in custody Monday on $10,000 bond.

Sutherland’s alleged plan to destroy the business at 1414 N. Eighth St. “didn’t work out the way he thought it would,” Pekin Deputy Fire Chief Brian Cox said Monday. Cooking oil “is not very flammable.”

Sutherland, a bartender and cook, told a fellow employee sometime before the fire “about moving to Texas and burning the business down,” and asked her if she knew how to set it on fire, according to a prosecutor’s court affidavit.

Loud and electronic alarms set off by a sprinkler system alerted an officer in the area of the North Eighth Street Plaza, where Goodfellas is located, and firefighters to the smoldering flames in the business shortly before noon.

While other businesses in the plaza were evacuated, the sprinklers kept the fire “in check until we got there,” Cox said.  Firefighters discovered that all of the restaurant’s kitchen burners had been left on full blast, as well as its broiler and a fryer, the affidavit stated. A box of cooking oil sat on one of the burners, while more oil was smeared on walls where evidence of fire also was found.

Sutherland allegedly prepared what he thought would turn into a huge blaze more than six hours earlier, after the business closed for the night.

The restaurant’s security video equipment was missing, but video from another security system in the area recorded a man identified as Sutherland in the building between 4 and 5 a.m., “holding electronic equipment and pouring a substance on hallway walls,” the affidavit stated.  

Several employees said Sutherland was the last worker to leave Goodfellas the night before the fire and had keys to the business, the affidavit stated.

Sutherland told police Friday that he didn’t remember setting the fire and didn’t do so on purpose, but thought it might have been “a drunken mistake,” the affidavit stated.

He said he had returned to the business after closing to retrieve his apartment keys. He slipped on grease on the kitchen floor and bumped the stove, but didn’t think he turned it on.

 

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Frisco, TX – Sprinkler system keeps early morning restaurant fire from spreading

A Frisco restaurant is temporarily closed, but spared thousands of dollars of damages thanks to their fire sprinkler system, according to the Frisco Fire Department. Frisco firefighters responded to a “water flow” call at 5:08 a.m. on May 21 from the alarm company that monitors the Posados on the 9500 block of S.H. 121.

When the firefighters arrived at 5:14 a.m., they discovered a kitchen full of smoke.  It took four engines and two ladder trucks to put out the fire at 5:30 a.m.

“The fire sprinkler system did what it’s supposed to do,” said Captain Kevin Haines of the Frisco Fire Department. “The restaurant was closed and no one was working at the time. That early in the morning, there are fewer people ‘out and about’, who might to notice and report a problem. In this case, the activated sprinklers slowed the fire’s ability to grow until firefighters arrived. There’s no doubt, fire sprinklers save property and lives.”

The Frisco Posados will be closed at least five days for repairs. There has been no report of any injuries.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Montgomery, AL – Sprinklers help contain grill fire at downtown restaurant; No injuries

A two-alarm fire Wednesday afternoon in the kitchen of Dreamland Bar-B-que in downtown Montgomery’s Alley development caused only light damage, despite sparking a dramatic jet of flame above the city’s skyline. The restaurant expects to reopen within a few days.

Wesley Dillard said he was eating near the kitchen at about 2:30 p.m. when “someone came running out to the table and said, ‘Everybody needs to get out of here immediately! The grill’s on fire!’”

No injuries were reported, and emergency officials said there was no impingement to the interior.

Dillard joined a crowd watching from across the street as all floors of the building were evacuated. A 10-foot jet of flame bellowed from the stack above the restaurant a few minutes later.

Fire officials said the sprinkler system activated. The flame above the restaurant disappeared about 2:40 p.m., and officials confirmed that the fire was under control before 3 p.m.

“I just hope there wasn’t too much damage,” Dillard said.

Dreamland ownership partner Bob Parker said the only damage was caused by the sprinklers. He said the ventilation system functioned properly, and the jet of flame was caused by the grease burning out. The restaurant hopes to reopen by Saturday.

In September, a kitchen fire at Central restaurant in the Alley forced the eatery to close for several days. Dreamland provided free lunch for Central employees as they assessed the damage and cleaned up after that fire.

Dreamland recovered quickly after a kitchen fire in 2013 — the restaurant only closed for part of one day. Fire officials said at the time that they also had responded to fire alarms at Dreamland in 2012 and 2009.

A two-alarm fire Wednesday afternoon in the kitchen of Dreamland Bar-B-que in downtown Montgomery’s Alley development caused only light damage, despite sparking a dramatic jet of flame above the city’s skyline. The restaurant expects to reopen within a few days.

Wesley Dillard said he was eating near the kitchen at about 2:30 p.m. when “someone came running out to the table and said, ‘Everybody needs to get out of here immediately! The grill’s on fire!’”

No injuries were reported, and emergency officials said there was no impingement to the interior.

Dillard joined a crowd watching from across the street as all floors of the building were evacuated. A 10-foot jet of flame bellowed from the stack above the restaurant a few minutes later.

Fire officials said the sprinkler system activated. The flame above the restaurant disappeared about 2:40 p.m., and officials confirmed that the fire was under control before 3 p.m.

“I just hope there wasn’t too much damage,” Dillard said.

Dreamland ownership partner Bob Parker said the only damage was caused by the sprinklers. He said the ventilation system functioned properly, and the jet of flame was caused by the grease burning out. The restaurant hopes to reopen by Saturday.

In September, a kitchen fire at Central restaurant in the Alley forced the eatery to close for several days. Dreamland provided free lunch for Central employees as they assessed the damage and cleaned up after that fire.

Dreamland recovered quickly after a kitchen fire in 2013 — the restaurant only closed for part of one day. Fire officials said at the time that they also had responded to fire alarms at Dreamland in 2012 and 2009.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Wayland, MA – Sprinkler system helps keep restaurant fire from spreading

A Boston Post Road restaurant established in 1930 will be closed for at least a week after a kitchen fire on Saturday, authorities said.   “Unfortunately, all of the food in the restaurant has to be destroyed,” said Houghton. “It’s safe to say the restaurant will have to be closed for at least a week.”

The fire department went to the Coach Grill around 1:30 p.m. for a report of fire showing from the building. Upon arrival, the department called for a second alarm, with Weston and Sudbury Fire departments assisting at the scene. The Natick and Lincoln Fire departments covered the stations, the chief said.

The fire was traced to a refrigeration unit in the kitchen, the chief said. The restaurant’s sprinkler system activated. The restaurant, which serves dinner and Sunday brunch, was closed at the time of the fire. No one was injured.

“With it being closed, there were no cars in the parking lot, so we were able to use the parking lot for all of the apparatus,” Houghton said.

 

The cause of the fire is not known and being investigated by the state fire marshal’s office.

 

“It’s not suspicious by any means, but because it is such a significant dollar loss, we want to make sure to get the exact cause pinpointed,” Houghton said..

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Durham, NC – Fire in smoker at BBQ restaurant extinguished by sprinkler system

Durham firefighters were called to The Pit restaurant at 321 Geer Street Friday, but damage was minimal and the restaurant remained open Friday evening. Firefighters were dispatched to the restaurant at 11:33 a.m. and arrived to find smoke visible and that a fire had been extinguished by the sprinkler system in the rear pig cooker/smoker area. Food caught fire in the cooker/smoker and extended to the wall and ceiling when the door of the cooker/smoker was opened.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

O’Fallon, IL – Sprinkler system keeps dumpster fire from spreading into restaurant and brewery

The Peel Pizza will be closed for the next few days following a four alarm fire.  The fire happened on Sunday in a dumpster behind the restaurant.  Though the fire was contained to the dumpster, the sprinkler systems inside the restaurant were activated, causing water damage within. The fire was so intense that the dumpster melted.

Investigators are still searching for the cause of the fire, but no indication has been found that the fire was malicious or suspicious. The interior of the restaurant did not sustain any fire damage, but they will be closed for a few days while they clean up water damage