Fire destroys popular Elrama Tavern restaurant
Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter
Firefighters walk around the Elrama Tavern restaurant in Union Township, which was destroyed by fire Thursday morning.
Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter
The Elrama Tavern restaurant in Union Township was destroyed by fire Thursday morning.
Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter
The Elrama Tavern restaurant in Union Township was destroyed by fire Thursday morning.
Mike Jones/Observer-Reporter
The Elrama Tavern restaurant in Union Township was destroyed by fire Thursday morning.
The popular Elrama Tavern restaurant was destroyed by fire Thursday morning, although no serious injuries were reported as all employees and customers were able to escape the building safely.
Fire crews were called to the restaurant at 1520 Route 837 in Union Township shortly before 11:30 a.m. and found the building engulfed in flames.
Four or five workers and an unknown number of patrons were able to get out of the restaurant safely, but one employee suffered minor burns to both arms as she tried to put out the fire in the rear basement area of the building, Elrama fire Chief Lenny Bailey said.
Bailey said investigators think an employee burning garbage behind the restaurant may have sparked the fire when embers from the rubbish traveled over to the building. He added the state police fire marshal is investigating and will make a final determination on what caused the blaze.
Route 837 near the Allegheny County line was closed in both directions while crews from numerous neighboring departments assisted Elrama firefighters in battling the blaze. Bailey said fighting the fire was made more difficult because they needed utility workers to come to the scene to turn off natural gas to the restaurant and cut the electricity flowing on nearby poles.
“It’s a total loss,” Bailey said.
The restaurant’s owner, Susan Grimm, politely declined comment at the scene. However, a post on the restaurant’s Facebook page about the fire thanked firefighters and the community for helping them through this difficult time.
“Our sincere gratitude to all of the 1st responders, neighbors, friends, family, and our employees who are working so hard right now to try and navigate through this tragic event,” the social media post read.
The restaurant was featured in a 2017 Mon Valley Magazine story in which Grimm described purchasing the restaurant on a whim in 2006 after previously working as a real estate agent. At the time, she said 18 people worked at the Elrama Tavern, including her two adult children.
“I love it here,” Grimm told the magazine, which is published by the Observer-Reporter. “I think owning this place has been unbelievably rewarding. I’m around such great people, and I have great customers. I love it.”
One regular customer, who showed up at the scene after the fire but declined to identify herself, said she loved coming to the restaurant for the soup. Many other customers also enjoyed the restaurant’s prime rib and steak sandwiches, according to the magazine story.
County assessment records show the structure was built in 1900, although it was not known if additions were constructed in later years. The building previously was a private home, but at some point was converted into a restaurant and bar, according to the magazine story.