In the past two months, three popular Baltimore restaurants have shut down — some temporarily, others until further notice — as a result of fires. As they wait for completed investigations, scholars have provided insight on how and why these fires can occur.
At Hamilton Hills live music bar Micky’s Joint, a dumpster fire on Dec. 4 left visible damage to the building’s rear, while the popular Jones Falls Basque restaurant, La Cuchara, and Pulaski-Industrial-area mainstay Chaps Pit Beef suffered damage from internal kitchen fires on Jan. 4 and Jan. 19, respectively. These restaurants join several others across the greater Baltimore area that have sustained fire damage in the past two years — others include Papi Cuisine, which was the site of a Federal Hill dumpster fire in May 2024, as well as Elkton’s UnWined on the Water, which was completely destroyed in a November 2025 fire with $1 million estimated in damages.
The infrastructure at each of these restaurants ranges considerably in age, with the three-story residential building that houses Micky’s Joint being constructed in 1920 and renovated in 2010; La Cuchara‘s multi-level Meadow Mill building built in 1877 and renovated in 1990; and the nearby Chaps Pit Beef, which spans over 4,300 square feet, built in 1948, all according to online real estate marketplace LoopNet.
Baltimore City Fire Department concluded its investigation of the fire at Chaps on Jan. 25. According to a Baltimore City incident report obtained by The Baltimore Sun, the source of the fire was determined to be the exhaust system over the restaurant’s grilling area. Chaps was able to reopen its doors on Jan. 22, according to a Facebook post by the restaurant.
“We are good and up and running,” wrote Natalie Rayner, director of operations at Chaps, in a Jan. 28 message to The Sun. “[T]his has nothing what so ever to do with anything other than an ember catching fire in our hood.”
Other restaurateurs, such as Krista Cushman, owner and events coordinator at Micky’s Joint, continue to wait for more news from the department.
“There was a fire investigation, but I haven’t heard anything from them since before the holidays,” she wrote in a Jan. 28 message to The Sun. When it comes to a reopening date, or to learning the extent of the damage to the facility, she said she is “still at the mercy of insurance and the landlord.”
According to Peter Sunderland, professor in the Department of Fire Protection Engineering at the University of Maryland’s A. James Clark School of Engineering, the Fire Department’s investigations could involve checking the restaurant’s suppression system, inspection records and potential fire sources such as chimneys, dumpsters or cooking stations. The Office of The Fire Marshall declined to answer questions from The Sun about the steps and usual duration of a fire inspection.
Like Cushman, Ben Lefenfeld, owner and executive chef of La Cuchara, said in a Monday interview that his team had “not really heard from the city since the fire occurred.” The process of assessing the restaurant’s damage and recuperating, he said, will be a slow one.
“We’re still not allowed in to even get quotes on replacing the hood system that caught fire because the insurance company is still going through it and doing their inspection reports. Then, we can really assess the situation and start real cleanup,” he said. As far as announcing a reopening date, Lefenfeld said, “we’re hoping that, in another month, we’ll have a better idea.”
Although two investigations are ongoing, local experts said that there are a number of common causes for these types of fires. Constant high heat, open flame and cooking of greasy foods make restaurants especially vulnerable to fires year round, while winter brings unique challenges with stronger wind gusts — a phenomenon that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has reported can fuel and spread flames.
William Koffel, an associate clinical professor in the same department as Sunderland, said in a Friday interview that one of the “most common causes” of dumpster fires outside of restaurants “improperly discarded smoking materials,” such as a cigarette thrown in the dumpster by a guest, employee or passerby of the restaurant.
“Ninety-nine times out 100 it won’t ignite, but sometimes it will flash over,” added Sunderland. “There’s plenty of other flammable things in there.”
Discarded ashes from wood-burning cooking stations are also common culprits in dumpster fires, Sunderland said. La Cuchara specializes in wood-fired cuisine; however, the restaurant’s fire started inside. Although an investigation is still ongoing, Lefenfeld recalled seeing “flames coming out” of the kitchen’s hood.
Oftentimes, said both Sunderland and Koffel, these fires are caused by a lack of diligent cleaning of kitchen hoods, which can collect flammable grease and debris over time. A working fire suppression system, activated by a fusible link that melts when temperatures rise, should protect the area to an extent — but only if the hood is sufficiently clean.
“I’ve been in restaurants where that link looks like a black golf ball. There is so much grease,” said Koffel. “When you see those types of conditions, that’s telling me that there are challenges for properly cleaning these systems.”
On the Chaps fire incident report, the department cited the “failure to clean” as a “factor contributing to ignition.” But Sunderland said that La Cuchara’s monthly hood cleanings is typically sufficient in preventing this type of fire.
Koffel said one of the more effective methods for preventing kitchen fires is to hire a “regular cleaning service;” however, in a time where raising costs and a slow winter season are continuing to plague restaurants, the feasibility of these methods remain in question.
“Professional maintenance is costly,” added Sunderland. “If you don’t stay up on that, then you’re at higher risk.”
At Micky’s Joint, Cushman wrote, “I am so saddened and confused by all the fires, extreme weather, and the fact that most small businesses are struggling,” wrote Cushman. “Tough times out there”.
Have a news tip? Contact Jane Godiner at jgodiner@baltsun.com or on Instagram as @Jane.Craves.