Sosho bar and East Room club gutted in Shoreditch fire
Shoreditch's Sosho bar/restaurant and private members' club the East Room have been forced to close 'for the foreseeable future' after the business was completely gutted by fire this morning.
Speaking to BigHospitality, owner Jonathan Downey, said he was not sure when, or even if the businesses would be re-opened following the massive blaze which broke out in the building in Tabernacle Street in Shoreditch at 4.32am today.
"I've been down there and it's been completely gutted," he said. "The fire's caused millions of pounds of damage, both to the building and to business. The bar's just been kitted out with some great antique furniture which is all irreplaceable and about £50,000 worth of artwork has been destroyed."
Downey said trade had been strong before the blaze. "Both places are open seven days a week and have 24 hour licences. They've both been really busy, even in the current economic climate, so this is going to cost us massively," he said.
'Complicated fire'
Twenty fire engines and 100 firefighters were called out to fight the blaze, which spread across a number of buildings on Tabernacle Street. It was brought under control by 11.20am, but firefighters will remain at the scene for the rest of the day. There were no reported injuries.
London fire commissioner, Ron Dobson said the cause of the fire was yet to be investigated. "This was a complicated fire spreading rapidly through different premises and onto a bituemin covered roof, creating huge plumes of smoke across the city and presenting very difficult firefighting conditions for the crews attending," he said.
Sosho and the East Room are both part of the Match Bars group, which includes Milk & Honey, The Player, Trailer Happiness and Harlem and the three Match Bars in London. The company also owns hotels, bars and restaurants in Melbourne, Ibiza, New York and Chamonix.
