4 'iconic' Salt Lake bars, restaurants lost in massive Main Street fire; damage at $5M

SALT LAKE CITY — Jason LeCates began to tear up as Salt Lake Fire Division Chief Tony Allred emerged from the Whiskey Street Cocktails & Dining rubble with an American flag that he recovered from the charred bar and restaurant.

LeCates' mind was full. He had just lost the business that he co-owned, along with its sister bar and restaurant, White Horse Spirits & Kitchen. He thought about the impact it would have on his 150 employees, the costs to rebuild and whether insurance would cover his losses, ranging from the structure to the $500,000 worth of whiskey that burned.

But as Allred crawled through the rubble to grab the American flag Tuesday — one he proudly displayed at Whiskey Street since it opened 13 years ago — he felt an urge to tackle all those sudden uncertainties

"It's just giving me hope that we can rebuild," he told KSL.com as he held the flag. "It survived. We'll make sure the business survives."

Whiskey Street and White Horse were two of four businesses destroyed by the fire that broke out on Main Street in downtown Salt Lake City Monday night, as was evident when the smoke cleared Tuesday morning. The fire broke out in the kitchen of London Belle Supper Club, 321 S. Main, shortly before 8:45 p.m. and engulfed the other neighboring businesses, Salt Lake firefighters said.

London Belle suffered significant damages, as did Los Tapatios, a Mexican restaurant that neighbored London Belle on its north side, along with Whiskey Street and White Horse, the south end of the complex.

"It was clear upon initial investigation, from the arrival of our first crew, that there was an issue in the ceiling void — the space between the actual ceiling and the roof line — that's probably what led to the increased spread of the fire," said Salt Lake Fire Chief Karl Lieb, noting that there were some sprinkler systems in the century-old buildings but not enough to stop the fire's quick spread.

It took several hours for crews to get full control of the fire. It wasn't considered fully extinguished until a little before 7 a.m. Tuesday.

Some other businesses in the area, such as Eva Restaurant, received "associated damages" from the heat and smoke from the fire, as well as power outages and water used during firefighting efforts. Lieb estimates that the fire caused about $5 million in total damages.

Three firefighters suffered injuries battling the fire, including one who was briefly trapped by falling debris and another who broke an ankle, but all three are expected to recover. While the businesses were open at the time the fire started, no injuries were reported among employees or customers.

A 'tragic loss'

Mayor Erin Mendenhall called it a "tragic loss" for Salt Lake City. The block served as Restaurant Row during the city's latest version of "Open Streets" this summer because of its popular bar and restaurant scene, and the four businesses destroyed were at the center of it.

"These are iconic businesses in our downtown core, where thousands of us (and) thousands of visitors come to have a good time, connect and support local business owners," she said, standing across the street from the burnt buildings. "I think there's a lot of tears being shed among Salt Lakers who see the devastating damage here."

The city plans to use its emergency no-interest loans to help the businesses while they go through insurance assessments, she said. It also launched the Main Street Fire Employee Assistance Fund on Tuesday for the more than 200 employees impacted by the fire. The fund seeks to raise money that could be used for rent, groceries, transportation or other "essential expenses."

It's similar to the city's Tip Your Server program, which raised more than $650,000 for restaurant employees during the COVID-19 pandemic five years ago.

The Salt Lake City Downtown Alliance is also reviewing options to promote the businesses in the area that survived, but likely will feel lingering impacts for the foreseeable future, said Dee Brewer, the organization's director. Some of those ideas could be revealed in the coming days.

"We're going to strategically assess what their needs are," he said, adding that many neighboring businesses have expressed a desire to help. "We've rallied before."

Rebuilding the row

Multiple property and business owners joined LeCates in touring the damage Tuesday. They met with Mendenhall and Brewer earlier in the morning and conveyed that they plan to rebuild.

The feeling was mutual. Brewer said the city would like to rebuild the structures in the same fashion that made them downtown staples, while Mendenhall said they will explore ways to expedite the permitting and inspection processes to get the businesses rebuilt as soon as possible.

"We're going to miss them for a minute, but we're committed to bringing them back online," Brewer said.

Getting there is still an unknown, less than 24 hours since the fire started.

It's way too early to know how long a rebuild will take. However, LeCates said having support from neighboring businesses and the city does help, once he's ready to navigate the process.

"(We'll) sit back and see what the demolition is going to be, and see if there's anything recoverable. This flag shows there's a little bit to recover," he said. "But I think ... everything is a total loss."

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