Fire gutted The Central Cafe, a longtime eatery in Hawarden. | The Central Cafe Facebook page
Fire gutted The Central Cafe, a longtime eatery in Hawarden. | The Central Cafe Facebook page
Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, the owners of a popular eatery in Hawarden, in the state’s northwest region, plan to rebuild after a fire gutted the establishment.
Firefighters battled the blaze for more than nine hours on the day after Christmas at The Central Café, leaving owner Jen McVay to pick up the pieces in the wake of the blaze., according to KTIV.
“We are overwhelmed with all the concerns and prayers and the offerings of help we get since yesterday morning,” according to a Dec. 27 post on the restaurant’s Facebook page. “Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”
McVay, who was employed at the restaurant for more than five years before taking over as owner, told KTIV that while they plan to rebuild, they don’t know when that will be.
WHO13 reported that a GoFundMe page has been established to raise money to help rebuild the restaurant. The restaurant opened for business in 1976, and Jen and Chad McVay purchased the business in 2019, according to the GoFundMe page.
The loss of the restaurant, according to the WHO13 website, is reverberating throughout the community, with customers telling the station that the eatery had formed a special connection with people in the area.
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