Fire destroys iconic Midwest City restaurant
Chequers was burned in an overnight fire, leaving much of it destroyed
Chequers was burned in an overnight fire, leaving much of it destroyed
Chequers was burned in an overnight fire, leaving much of it destroyed
A restaurant fire in Midwest City left a local staple destroyed.
The owner is reeling and the community is reacting to the loss.
Chequers has been around since 1987. The current owner has owned the building since 2000. With such a longstanding reputation, the community feels for Chequers.
“Chequers is a pretty big staple of Midwest City. They’ve been here a long time. Being next door, we have eaten there quite a bit. They have great food,” said Rebecca Burt, co-owner of Wilson Pharmacy.
Around midnight Friday morning, Midwest City firefighters responded to a call of smoke billowing from Chequers.
“At the midnight hour, we had a passerby call 911, said they thought they saw smoke at the structure,” said Anthony Williams with the Midwest City Fire Department. “Right now, it’s probably about 25% damage of fire to the building.”
Wilson Pharmacy is right next door on Air Depot Boulevard. Its co-owner said the restaurant’s impact on the community extends to their business.
"Anytime people ask where we're located, we're always next to Chequers, and they usually know what that means,” Burt said. "We're kind of a tight community I would say, so it's pretty hard to see."
Since the fire happened after-hours, no one was hurt.
"I hope they come back bigger and better,” Burt said. "We like having them next door, so hopefully that works out and they come back with a nice, bigger and better place.”
The owner of the restaurant said the news is devastating, particularly after having made it through the pandemic.