PORTLAND, Ore. (KPTV) – A fire on Monday morning didn’t just send a restaurant up in flames, but more than 30 years of hard work.
Portland Fire and Rescue responded to a fire at Caffe Mingo and Barba Mingo on NW 21st St. on Monday at around 5 a.m.
They said the flames were fueled by a natural gas line and were extinguished by 6 a.m., but the fire’s cause is still under investigation.
FOX 12 spoke with owner Michael Cronan on Thursday as he surveyed the damage.
“It was much more extensive than we originally hoped for and thought,” Cronan said. He said much of the interiors of both restaurants were destroyed.
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A fire has shut down a popular Italian restaurant and bar in northwest Portland.
He opened Caffe Mingo in 1991 and took over the fine Italian restaurant Barba Mingo in 2007 when the previous owners stepped down.
Cronan said he locked up for the night on Sunday and woke up to find fire crews, smoke, and his restaurant completely destroyed inside.
“It’s a pretty surrealistic pill if you will, it’s not easy,” Cronan said. “35 employees made their living here. So that’s all very raw and happening right now. It’ll settle down and we’ll be okay, and everybody will be okay, nobody got hurt.”
While FOX 12 was there, many people stopped to tell Cronan how sorry they were to see it happen, and how much they loved his restaurants.
“It’s really sad, it’s been a special spot in Northwest Portland for many, many years,” said patron Don Heistumam. “It’s just really welcoming, it’s pretty authentically Italian, Michael has traveled to Italy a lot and it shows in the food and the way the place is set up.”
A community member set up a GoFundMe to support Cronan and his staff during this time. Cronan said the response from the community as a whole has been tremendous, and the phone has been ringing off the hook.
“I can’t begin to tell you, hundreds and hundreds. We’ve almost had to turn off our answering machines,” he said. “A lot of people held this place as one of their go-to places so they feel the loss in a direct way.”
Cronan says if everything comes together, he hopes to be back up and running in about six months, but seeing his business in ashes is heartbreaking.
“It’s a fire and nobody got hurt, and we’ll be back,” Cronan said tearfully.
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