Investigator finds fire at the Ninth restaurant 'originated within wall void'

Jun Tanaka’s restaurant the Ninth in London’s Fitzrovia is to remain closed for longer than expected after a fire broke out in the building last month.

The Michelin-starred venue was damaged by a blaze on 20 July, the day after the UK experienced a record-breaking heatwave with temperatures nearing 40 degrees Celsius.

In an initial Instagram post after the fire the chef said he expected the restaurant to be closed “for at least a couple of weeks” but told The Caterer this was now likely to last much longer.

The restaurant team are putting together a scope of works required to refurbish the site and will need to send the proposals to contractors and insurers.

Tanaka said: “No one knows a definite timeline, but we’ll probably have a better idea in about two weeks.

“It’s really difficult and there are a lot of people away on holiday and we need to make sure there are people to do the work.”

The chef said he was focused on “making sure the team are ok” during the restaurant’s closure and plans to run weekly training sessions to keep staff engaged.

“It will be things that you don’t get to do when you’re open because you don’t have the time. Things like visiting suppliers. We’re trying to make the best of it really.”

London Fire Brigade initially said the damage was believed to have been caused by an unattended log burner, but the Tanaka said this was incorrect as the restaurant did not have one.

He said two separate forensic investigators had since agreed the fire was caused by “low temperature ignition” of a timber stud in a wall void adjacent to the kitchen.

Tanaka said: “It’s just one of those things and there was not really a lot we could do [about it].

“Luckily no one was hurt, and the fire could have been a lot worse. Someone saw it and called the fire brigade who responded really quickly. We’ve got to look at the positives.”

The Ninth opened in 2015 and was Tanaka's first solo venture. It won a Michelin star in the Michelin Guide Great Britain and Ireland 2016 and the Menu of the Year award at the 2017 Cateys.