Will this Calabash seafood restaurant be rebuilt? Here are the details
It’s been almost three months since a long-standing Calabash seafood restaurant burned down. But soon, it will earn a new life.
Kurt Hardee, owner of Ella’s of Calabash confirmed with The Sun News that the North Carolina restaurant will be rebuilt as soon as their insurance company is ready. Hardee hopes rebuilding will start in October or November.
Ella’s caught fire in April due to a broiler that flared up, Hardee said. Because of how old the building was and the fact it was made of wood, the fire traveled into the ceiling, sealing the restaurant’s fate.
Nobody was injured, according to previous reporting from The Sun News. The restaurant had been in Calabash for 73 years, and is owned by Hardee’s family.
“There’s no way we’re going out like that,” Hardee said.
They also own Beck’s Restaurant, another seafood joint located nearby. When Ella’s burned down and some employees were displaced, Beck’s took those employees in, according to a Facebook post from the Brunswick County Chamber of Commerce that encouraged residents and visitors to support Beck’s.
Since the fire and the move to Beck’s, Hardee says that business is still going well.
“I don’t want to sound corny and say customers are like family, but, I got to talk to a couple that just left out of here that were regular Ella’s customers and they got to see their favorite waitress, see me and see everybody, so it’s kind of cool.”
Beck’s met a similar fiery fate to Ella’s 12 years ago, and was rebuilt two months later. Five months after that initial fire, Beck’s reopened. While Ella’s timeline is a bit slower, Hardee said he had no doubt in his mind rebuilding was the correct choice.
The new Ella’s building will follow the same blueprint as the old building, but will not be any fancier. Hardee describes the new building as “simple” and “refined.”
“It’s all we’ve ever known,” he said.
