Balena owners hope to reopen
A roof fire Tuesday night at a building in Lincoln Park led to the evacuation of a popular Italian restaurant.
“Last night, during a full dinner service, Balena had to be evacuated due to a fire in the building,” the owners posted on the restaurant’s Facebook page Wednesday morning.
The fire was reported about 6: 50 p. m. in a fourstory building at 1633 N. Halsted and was put out by 9 p. m., according to the Chicago Fire Department.
Balena is on the first floor of the building.
Fire Media said several people left the restaurant about the time the fire was reported, and no one was found inside when the building was searched.
No injuries were reported, Fire Media said, and the cause of the fire was under investigation.
“From what we know right now, it appears to have been an electrical fire that was started in the ceiling,” the owners wrote on Facebook. “The most important thing is that no one was injured, and everyone was evacuated from the building safely.”
They said the “damage looks fairly extensive in the kitchen, upstairs dining room and main dining room, however we’re hoping to have Balena reopened as soon as possible.”
Balena employees will be immediately reassigned to other establishments in the Boka Restaurant Group and B. Hospitality Co., the owners said.
They thanked the Chicago Police and Fire departments for their “immediate response to our 911 call, and for helping to extinguish the fire in a safe and efficient manner.”
Reservations can be rescheduled at other group restaurants by calling ( 312) 238- 9896. Matthew Hendrickson,
Jeff Mayes
Cops: 2 posed as buyers to steal at open houses
A man and woman who posed as interested home buyers at real estate openhouse events in the western suburbs were actually going to steal items from the homes, according to police.
George Kallas, 19, and Sophie Kallas, 18, were arrested last week and charged with three counts each of residential burglary, according to Glen Ellyn police.
Investigators had been looking into several cases in which the offenders posed as interested buyers, walked through homes, and stole jewelry and other items, police said.
Five such incidents had been reported in Glen Ellyn since July 23, and police said there were “other incidents discovered around the same time period” in the area.
George Kallas was arrested on Aug. 2, and Sophie Kallas turned herself in to police the following day. Both lived in the 900 block of Newton Avenue in Glen Ellyn.