Business owners are vowing to bring back the lively vibe they built in the heart of downtown Salt Lake City’s nightlife district — and city officials are promising to help, after three bars and a restaurant were destroyed in a fire Monday night.

But in the meantime, Mayor Erin Mendenhall noted at a news conference Tuesday, “there are dozens and dozens of employees who are not going to be able to go to work tonight.”

The city will look into ways to help those service workers, she said, similar to the “Tip Your Servers” program it helped organize during the COVID-19 pandemic. “We’re going to be working as a city to support this community,” she said.

The spirit of the 300 South block is “fabulous drinks and food, laughter and memories,” said Stuart Melling founder and chief writer of Gastronomic SLC. The people who work there, he said, make that happen.

“I’m certain there are thousands, like me, that have been brought endless joy by this small strip of the city; not least the cast of wonderful servers, bartenders, and chefs – who made this central area – the city’s number one destination,” Melling wrote on the Gastronomic site.

(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Bottles are seen at Whiskey Street following a fast moving fire on Monday night along Main Street in Salt Lake City that caused catastrophic damage several businesses, Tuesday, August 12, 2025.

Eva Lopez Chavez, a member of the Salt Lake City Council, responded to a question on Instagram about services that might be provided to bar employees with “on it.”

Fire Chief Karl Lieb confirmed three bars on the 300 South block of Main Street — London Belle, Whiskey Street and White Horse — were destroyed, along with the Mexican restaurant Los Tapitios.

The Facebook page for London Belle, where the fire officials said the blaze started fire started in the kitchen, added: “Our hearts go out to all of our incredible neighbors that were impacted, and all of the families, owners, and staff.”

The post for the bar, opened in 2018 by owner Frank Paulraj, said it hopes to see Salt Lake City “for another round in the future” and ended with “Guess we really did have the hottest vibes in SLC.”

It began on a more serious note: “Last night we watched as our beautiful London Belle was destroyed. We want to thank everyone for showing us so much love and support … Your kindness has meant the world to us since the day we opened and especially now!”

The Downtown Alliance, in a statement, said the property owners “have shared with us their intent to rebuild.” The buildings date back to the 1920s, the statement said, “and have long been part of the fabric of Main Street.”

(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Salt Lake City Fire Chief Kari Lieb gives a fire update alongside Salt Lake City mayor Erin Mendenhall, following a fire Monday night that destroyed several businesses along Main Street, Tuesday, August 12, 2025.

“They want to come back as soon as possible,” Mendenhall said the news conference. The city’s economic development office will work with affected businesses, to help get them open again as soon as possible, she said.

‘Our hearts are with our neighbors’

The fire that destroyed the four businesses stopped before reaching Eva, the tapas place one door north of Los Tapatios, according to the restaurant’s Instagram account.

“We have some smoke and water damage, but nothing major and we’re feeling optimistic,” Eva’s owners wrote. They also thanked the Salt Lake City Fire Department for their “incredible work,” and said “our hearts are with our neighbors who were more impacted.”

Just north of Eva, the long-standing bar Cheers 2 You was “blessed not to sustain much damage other than smoke damage,” the owner posted on Reddit.

The bar will reopen as soon as power comes back on and the city gives the OK, the owner said, adding that the owners of the neighboring bars “are personal friends and I can only imagine how devastating this is to them, their families and their staff.”

The owners of Los Tapatios are Alejandro Maya and Christian Luna, brothers-in-law, and they also have not commented to The Tribune.

Whiskey Street and White Horse are part of the Bourbon Group, which has not yet responded to a request for comment.

The state agency that issues liquor licenses gives bar owners some leeway when their business must close in an emergency, such as a fire.

The Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Services may approve a business’ 60-day closure, and extend the closure another 30 days if the licensee makes a written request, DABS spokesperson Michelle Schmitt said Tuesday.

After those 90 days are up, a license holder must go to the DABS commission during the board’s monthly meeting to get permission for a longer extension.

Melling, in his GastronomicSLC post, suggested ways people can support the destroyed businesses. Bourbon Group also operates Franklin Ave., at 231 S. Edison St. And Los Tapatios has locations in Rose Park and Taylorsville.

Peter Marshall — owner of Utah Book and Magazine, a used-book store that shares a wall with White Horse — said he only saw a small amount of water that affected his own business.

Marshall said he got to the scene around 10 p.m. Monday, and officials told him to stay away. He wasn’t able to get a good look until around 3 a.m., he said, adding that by then, his store’s doors were wide open.

The bookstore will reopen, Marshall said, as soon as he gets power back.

(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) One of the co-owners of Whiskey Street holds a flag that survived the fire and menu’s retrieved by the book store owner next door, as she looks at the aftermath of a fire that destroyed four businesses on Monday night along Main Street, Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2025. The American flag survived the fire that destroyed Whiskey Street, White Horse, London Belle and Los Tapatios. The flag had been hanging on a wall of Whiskey Street since it opened in 2013.

The bar to the south of the bookstore, Bodega & The Rest, reported in an Instagram story that it suffered some “smoke-related impacts from a nearby incident,” and would be closed Tuesday.

Mother Café & Bar, a coffee shop set to open this month in the old Alibi space at 369 S. Main, wrote on Instagram that it “was spared, but others were not. We are beyond heartbroken for thse small business owners and their employees.” Mother’s owners said that “our priority is to help our neighbors rebuild this culture-heavy block.”

People at Takashi, a sushi restaurant on Market Street around the corner from the fire area, wrote on the restaurant’s Instagram that they also were “heartbroken” over the fire. “Sending love during this incredibly difficult time,” Takashi’s note added.

(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Jason LeCates, one of the managing partners of Whiskey Street and the White Horse on Main Street in Salt Lake City, reacts to the damage from a fire the night before on Tuesday, August 12, 2025.

Reactions to the damage

Kathy and Don Berry, from Salt Lake City, came to Main Street to see the aftermath of the fire — after they made sure their granddaughter, who lives in the area, was OK.

The Berrys said they weren’t regulars at any of the bars, but had visited before. They looked at the blackened debris in what once were the bars’ outdoor seating areas, and wondered what the fire meant for the block and the city’s history.

“It’s so sad, because it’s a lot of nostalgia,” Kathy Berry said. “There didn’t used to be all the malls around, and so we shopped down here. … It can never be the same.”

(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Charley Perry, owner of Eva which sits next door to businesses that burned along Main Street in Salt Lake City, says “I think we’re ok,” despite the catastrophic damage to the businesses of London Belle, Whiskey Street, White Horse and Los Tapatios, Tuesday, August 12, 2025.

How the fire was fought

Fire Chief Karl Lieb said Tuesday that firefighters were dispatched to respond to a fire in London Belle’s kitchen at about 8:40 p.m. Monday.

Lieb said three firefighters suffered minor injuries while battling the fire. One broke an ankle, another suffered dehydration and smoke inhalation, and the third was pinned briefly by debris.

Firefighters who first arrived at the scene, Lieb said, made sure everyone was evacuated. They also found smoke between the building’s ceiling and roof.

By 9:42 p.m., a third alarm was called for the fire. Ultimately, he said, about 78 firefighters responded.

A normal attack, from the inside and on top of the building, wasn’t safe, Lieb said. Firefighters faced poor visibility, high heat, intense smoke and limited space, he said.

“We were quite fortunate that we were able to stop the fire where we did,” he said. Given the fire’s speed, available fuel and intensity, he said he believes firefighters did a “tremendous job.”