Thatched roof inferno leaves Michelin pub a charred ruin
A CELEBRATED Michelinstarred restaurant was reduced to ashes when the 14th century building’s thatched roof caught fire.
Diners were in the Star Inn at Harome, North Yorkshire, when the fire alarm sounded at around 10pm on Wednesday.
Everyone was evacuated safely but when the blaze spread to the straw thatched roof there was nothing that could be done to stop it.
Chef and owner Andrew Pern, who took over the restaurant in 1996 aged 25, said the building ‘didn’t stand a chance’ as the thatch provided ‘perfect’ fuel for the blaze. In 2002, The Star Inn was only the second pub in the country to be awarded the coveted Michelin star.
Mr Pern said: ‘It was smouldering at first and the staff did a brilliant job, they grabbed all the fire extinguishers, got a hosepipe from the cellar, they did an amazing job themselves. There was nobody in the property, nobody hurt at all.
‘It’s one of those risks that comes with a thatched property, once it took a grip it didn’t really stand a chance.’ He said the building’s frame had ‘just about gone’, although a newer section of the pub ‘should be OK’.
At its height 45 firemen tackled the blaze and they were there throughout the night. The Star Inn has become one of the most celebrated gastropubs in the country due to its ‘modern Yorkshire’ dishes made from locally sourced seasonal ingredients.
The restaurant is described in the Michelin Guide as ‘oozing character with its low beamed ceilings’. Much of its oak furniture came from the workshop founded by Robert (Mouseman) Thompson in nearby Kilburn, which features a carved mouse on almost every piece.
Gill Chadbon, who works at the inn, said diners were still eating when the fire started.
‘Everybody left the building and we assumed it was nothing too serious at first, with people leaving their coats and bags in the bar,’ she said.
‘We got outside and could see smoke coming from the roof – members of staff were able to rescue the Mouseman furniture from the pub before the fire took hold.’
The cause of the blaze is not yet known.