ELLSWORTH, Maine — A driver who passed by the former Hilltop House restaurant on High Street late Tuesday noticed flames and called for help, Deputy Fire Chief Gary Saunders said Wednesday.
“Upon arrival, it was probably 50 percent engulfed, and it spread from there,” the deputy chief said. “It had a real good start on us.”
William Liang, the owner of China Hill Restaurant just down the street, was in the process of renovating the building into a new location for his restaurant.
“We were almost done,” Liang said by phone Wednesday. “We make it so beautiful. Now, we have to absolutely start from scratch.”
China Hill opened in town more than 30 years ago, and Liang said he wanted to provide customers with a fresh location, which he planned to open next month.
“As soon as they give me the OK, we start [the] rebuild,” said Liang, who indicated the building was insured.
The fire was reported at about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday. Firefighters from Ellsworth were joined by others from Trenton, Lamoine and Hancock, who worked through the night to extinguish the blaze, Saunders said Wednesday. At one point, an excavator was used to get to the fire in the roof, the deputy fire chief said. No injuries were reported.
For decades, the property was home to the Hilltop House restaurant that closed in the early 2000s. The last restaurant to operate at the locale was Betty’s Hilltop House, which opened for business in March of 2015 and closed in July 2016.
The owner of China Hill, under Hong Fong Fat LLC., purchased the building Aug. 16, 2016, for $791,000 from Wayne Wright, operating under Jo Jos LLC, according to the city’s assessing department.
“It’s completely gone,” Liang said of the fire damages.
The state fire marshal’s office will try to determine how the fire started, the deputy chief said.
“The cause is under investigation, and the fire marshal is on scene,” Saunders said Wednesday morning.
Firefighters spent the night and much of the morning at the scene putting out hot spots, he said.
High Street was closed during the overnight hours but has since reopened.
“It was a real valiant effort by the guys to get this out with all the wind, rain, sleet and snow we had to deal with last night,” Saunders said.
Liang said he really didn’t want to talk to anybody after the fire, but he wanted to let people and customers know everyone is safe, and to thank them for their support.
China Hill Restaurant, which employs between 15 and 20 people depending on the season, will remain open at its current location until the new place is completed, the owner said.
“I wouldn’t let people go hungry,” Liang said.