A 3-Michelin star restaurant in Napa has burned down in California's latest wildfire
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Anneta Konstantinides
Sep 30, 2020, 03:30 IST
The main building and restaurant at Meadowood Napa Valley luxury resort burns after the Glass Fire moved through the area on September 28, 2020 in Napa, California.Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Restaurant at Meadowood, a Napa Valley restaurant with three Michelin stars, has burned to the ground in California's latest wildfire.
The world-famous restaurant was consumed by the Glass Fire on Monday morning.
A spokesperson for the Restaurant at Meadowood's parent company said the restaurant will be rebuilt and reopen.
Glass Fire has destroyed seven wineries and burned more than 42,000 acres as of Tuesday morning.
All that remains of the Restaurant at Meadowood — also known as TRAM — is two brick fireplaces and the stone stairs at the entrance.
It burned down in the Glass Fire, which has destroyed seven wineries and burned more than 42,000 acres as of Tuesday morning, according to Cal Fire's latest incident report.
Chef Christopher Kostow, TRAM's head chef, confirmed the loss of his restaurant with an Instagram post on Monday night.
A post shared by Christopher Kostow (@ckostow) on Sep 28, 2020 at 4:53pm PDT
"We are all torn apart," Kostow's caption read. "A Euology is deserved, and will be given in due time. For now, I want to thank all of the TRAMily that have ever graced this magical space — and all of the guests over the years who have enjoyed the efforts of these multitudes. What an honor it has been."
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The restaurant has plans to rebuild
Kostow told Insider he has "no doubt" that Napa Valley will "rebuild and come back stronger than ever."
"Napa Valley and California have seen their share of challenges and have always demonstrated a resiliency that others emulate," he said. "The important thing right now is to protect lives and property, and address the bigger issue of climate change."
Guests and staff at Meadowood, the five-star luxury resort where TRAM was located, were evacuated from the 250-acre property on Sunday, according to the East Bay Times.
The Glass Fire reached Meadowood around 3 a.m. on Monday morning, Brett Anderson, a spokesperson for the resort's parent company, told the paper.
TRAM was already engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived on the scene, Capt. Matt Dowland told ABC 7.
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"We were able to put it out [but] unfortunately the water system, the tanks, got destroyed and then we ran out of water," Dowland added.
Firefighters drained the resort's swimming pool to access more water, but TRAM couldn't be salvaged.
Parts of the resort still stand, but Anderson told CBS San Francisco that the Meadowood team was "heartbroken" to lose its legendary restaurant.
Anderson said it wouldn't be the end of TRAM's legacy, however, adding that the Harlan family, which has owned Meadowood for six decades, already had plans to rebuild it.
"We're going to reopen," he told the site. "And we believe that the Napa Valley, as it has in the past, will experience a renaissance after this."
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The fire that burned down TRAM — called the Glass Fire — has already burned 11,000 acres in Napa Valley
The Glass Fire has wreaked havoc in Napa Valley with unprecedented speed, torching 11,000 acres in just 24 hours after it began around 3:50 a.m. on Sunday, according to the Cal Fire incident report.
By Monday morning the fire had jumped from the east to the west side of the valley, shocking many residents and business owners who thought they were a safe distance away from the flames, according to CBS San Francisco.
Among them was Dario Sattui, owner of the famous Castello di Amorosa Winery. The fire engulfed the winery's storage building, destroying millions of dollars worth of bottled wine.
"I should have stayed up all night, I didn't think the fire would jump Highway 29," Sattui told ABC 7. "The lab is gone, offices are gone, the wine was destroyed."
The Glass Fire has also devastated the Chateau Boswell Winery in St. Helena and the nearby Black Rock Inn, according to The San Francisco Chronicle.
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More than 68,000 people have been forced to evacuate Napa Valley and Sonoma County. The fire was 0% contained as of Tuesday morning.
"It's like God has no sympathy, no empathy for Sonoma County," Sonoma County Supervisor Susan Gorin told the Chronicle after evacuating her home.
Wildfires continue to destroy millions of acres in California
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