Kitchen fire at historic restaurant leaves owners shaken, grateful for community
By Jon Schoenheider
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WINDHAM, New Hampshire (WMUR) — A restaurant for 25 years and a structure that has stood for more than 200, the historic Windham Restaurant was forced to close its door after a kitchen fire early Wednesday morning.
Facing a long road to recovery, the owners said they’re grateful for the community’s outpouring of support as they look to rebuild.
Sahal and Karolyn Laher have owned the Windham Restaurant for the past two and a half years, buying it from the previous owner who retired. Just like a famous TV show, they said it’s a place where ‘everybody knows your name.’
“We call it Windham’s ‘Cheers’, where everyone comes and creates a great sense of community,” Sahal said.
They first found out about the fire when Windham police showed up at their home overnight. As they were driving over to the restaurant, they expected the worst.
“We rushed over here,” Sahal said. “By that time, there were already about 10 or 11 fire trucks.”
The Windham Fire Department said the fire broke out around 1:00 a.m. in the restaurant’s back kitchen. The exterior of the building’s rear was also damaged.
“I think initially it was just shock and devastation,” Karolyn said. “We spent the last two and a half years building the business. So it’s little overwhelming to think, ‘How are we going to do this again?'”
With the restaurant now closed, members of the Windham community are sharing hopes for a quick recovery.
“It’s obviously devastating,” said Marasa Billone, a lifelong Windham resident. “My family enjoys going there. It’s very close to our home, so it’s one of our main choices for restaurants.”
An online fundraiser has already collected thousands of dollars in donations, which the Lahers said will go to their employees while they focus on reconstruction.
It’s this support, they said, that gives them confidence they can rebuild bigger and better than before.
“Everyone in the community has really been great,” Sahal said. “We each have over 100 text messages to respond to right now, numerous phone calls.”
The Windham Fire Department said no one was inside during the fire, and no one was injured. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
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