On a Saturday afternoon in mid-November, something exploded inside an Autozone store in a Los Angeles shopping center. Within minutes, the store and two adjacent restaurants had burst into flames.
One of those restaurants was Fat Sal’s, a popular local chain known for its massive, indulgent sandwiches and New York-style brassiness. “We’re making sandwiches over here,” is the motto—an homage to Ratso Rizzo’s “I’m walkin’ here” line in “Midnight Cowboy.”
At the time, guests were sitting on the Hollywood restaurant’s patio, perhaps dining on a Fat Texas, for example, with barbecued pastrami brisket topped with chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, bacon, grilled onions, melted cheddar and mozzarella and fries, all on a garlic hero; or maybe a Fat Hot Chick, which involves Nashville hot chicken topped with mac-and-cheese bites and Flamin’ Hot Cheetos.
Very quickly, however, Fat Sal’s became like a war zone.
“It was an epic fire,” said co-owner Josh Stone, CEO of Fat Sal’s parent New York Restaurant Concepts Inc. “The fire department quickly went from offense to defense because of all the combustibles and flammables. You could see it from the whole LA basin.”
The restaurant’s guests and staff were quickly evacuated and hundreds of firefighters worked to contain the flames as combustibles within the auto parts store exploded like minibombs inside.
Firefighters contained the flames within a few hours but were forced to let it burn because of the combustible materials inside. | Photo courtesy of Fat Sal's.
Somewhat miraculously, there were no injuries.
But Fat Sal’s Hollywood was completely destroyed.
That night, Stone and co-owner Sal Capek were talking to the shopping center landlord outside the charred remains of the building.
“We knew we were insured. The landlord was going to try to rebuild. But we all know that would take time. It could take years,” which would leave staffers scrambling to find work, right before the holidays, said Capek.
In addition, this location in the heart of Hollywood was one of the chain’s top performers among the nine units in Los Angeles, doing more than $5 million in annual sales. Even with business interruption insurance, losing that unit would be a hit.
But then the landlord said he had another space. And it was just down the block. Would they be interested in taking it?
“We looked at it on Sunday afternoon [after the fire] and by the next day we were making food there,” said Stone.
And, just like that, within 48 hours, Fat Sal’s Hollywood was open again for business.
But this was no makeshift popup operation.
The new, perhaps temporary home was remade into “Club Fat Sal’s,” because the former event space had lighting that gave it a nightclub vibe. It also had a hood, and other kitchen features that were needed.
“It was a gargantuan effort,” said Stone. “We had maybe 50 people in the new restaurant over two days doing some level of construction, cleaning the kitchen, or painting and hanging artwork, or testing the POS and fixing things.
“If there was a theme to that 48-hour turnaround, it was ‘let’s not take no for an answer. We’re opening tomorrow, no matter what,’” he added.
Often, it’s getting the equipment that can delay a restaurant opening, but fortunately Fat Sal’s had equipment at the ready. The chain is about to open two more restaurants in LA in the next few months, so the equipment had already been ordered and was in a local warehouse.
Within days, a billboard over the boarded up former Fat Sal’s location directed guests to the new spot nearby. And, in fine Hollywood tradition, the chain also posted a short video about the phoenix-like rebirth.
In fact, the whole thing happened so quickly, Stone and Capek said they hadn’t even discussed some basic issues—like the rent.
“We’re not sure if we’re staying here for two months or two years at this point,” Capek said. “But we have a great relationship with this landlord. He always treated Josh and I like sons.”
There is still much to be decided, the two partners note. But when disasters like this happen, it’s important to “get back to normalcy as quickly as possible,” said Stone.
Meanwhile, Fat Sal’s will continue its growth path, with mostly company units (and two licensed locations) in Los Angeles and a licensed location in Las Vegas, with two more on deck. The chain is launching franchising this year, and they envision their sandwiches that put chicken fingers on top of pastrami on top of onion rings will have national appeal.
But, when watching their blood, sweat and tears burn to the ground, and the hundreds of firefighters who risked their lives to save their property, “it puts things in perspective,” said Capek. “You have nothing but gratitude for these first responders.”
Added Stone, “We kiss our kids good night and we know what’s important. It’s not a restaurant. It’s not bricks and glass and lighting. That’s not what’s really important in life.”
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