Restaurant owner vows a stronger return after fire

Louise Walsh

A business owner whose restaurant was hit twice by storm flooding this year has had to shutter the venue after it was gutted by fire at the weekend.

However the resilient Ciara Burke has vowed to come back bigger and better after the blaze which broke out around 6pm at Sage and Stone on Friday.

Extensive damage was caused to the restaurant after the fire, which was brought under control by a number of units of the fire service.

Ciara Burke said she was devastated to have to tell her 36 staff that they had no longer a job at the Duleek location

The hugely popular entrepreneur has had to constantly diversify her business to survive in recent years and as well as extend her menu, she also added a successful gift and antique shop and dog park on the premises.

Crowds had also been expected on Saturday to attend her biggest ever open air flea market.

Earlier this year, she had to replace flooring on two separate occasions in just two weeks due to storm flooding.

Ciara was enjoying dinner in Duleek and looking forward to a week away with friends when her daughter rang her about the fire.

"We are all just traumatised and shocked and all I have to say is thank God, there was no-one on the premises at the time," she said.

Assessors and forensic experts are currently on site to ascertain the seat of the blaze.

"The restaurant will have to be completely rebuilt. It's all the unknown at the minute and I've so many meetings to attend and paperwork to fill in.

"It was devastating to tell all my 36 staff that they had no job. They are more than staff. They are my friends and they are like my family. I probably spend more time with them than my family. I wouldn't have got through so much already without them.

"I am just going to have to rethink things but if it means putting up a circus tent here and serving take away coffees, then that's what I will do in the coming weeks.

"It's going to be something like the Greatest Showman. But it will open again in some shape or form soon because it is the hub of the community."

The mother of four said she has been overwhelmed with the outpouring of support, kindness and love from so many over the last few days.

"People I don't see on a regular basis have offered me help and so many people have offered me the use of dump trucks and other equipment which has been so generous but obviously I can't use them for health and safety as well as insurance reasons.

"It's been like a death in the community and people have been arriving here constantly with flowers and sausage rolls."

In January and early February, Sage & Stone had to be closed for over a week as storm waters flooded the restaurant and destroyed flooring twice.

"What's going to happen next? A storm of locusts? ", she added.

"It doesn't matter what comes now. We will get through this. I'm resilient and we will be back, bigger and better than ever."