Fire Causes $700,000 Damage to Great China Restaurant

A fire caused $700,000 worth of damage to restaurant in downtown Berkeley Wednesday night, Berkeley fire officials said.

The blaze started shortly after 9 p.m. and was caused by a cooking fire in the kitchen that quickly spread, according to Assistant Fire Capt. Jon Fitch. The fire was upgraded to a two-alarm fire when flames caught the ceiling and roof of the building, Berkeleyside reports.

At 10 p.m., @AChanceFind wrote to @Berkeley Patch on Twitter, stating that the "crowd has mostly dispersed and it seems well under control," adding "A+ to BFD!” Fire officials say the blaze was extinguished by 11:30 p.m.

The restaurant at 2115 Kittredge St. shares a building with  next door. Razan's was not affected and given the all-clear to remain open Thursday.

Great China sustained $500,000 in damage to the building, and $200,000 in damage to its contents. Fitch confirmed that the restaurant would be shut down due to the fire.

Both restaurants were evacuated during the fire, although there were not many customers in either at that hour. No one was injured.

Bay City News contributed to this report.