Fire Causes "Significant" Damage at Ole' Hardwood

A fire ripped through South Loop barbecue joint Ole' Hardwood around 4:45 this morning causing "significant" damage, according to a Chicago Breaking News report. There were no apparent injuries and none of the surrounding buildings had to be evacuated. At this point, the extent of the damages are unknown and the cause of the fire is being investigated.

It's somewhat ironic that a place known for firing up ribs should go up in smoke, and it seems this joint was cursed from the start. The restaurant popped up out of nowhere and shortly after it opened, it ran out of ribs during a busy service. Then, the following day, they had to close after allegedly not paying suppliers. Then it looked as if things got under control. That is until this morning when the fire broke out. We put in a call to the restaurant's general manager, but have not yet heard back.
· South Loop Barbeque Restaurant Goes Up in Smoke [Chicago Breaking]
· BBQ Meltdown [~EChi~]
· Where's the Beef? [~EChi~]

UPDATE: Sloopin has more information about the fire, including a first-hand witness account, a video and a link to a Sun-Times story alleging some shady business. And they call it Ole' Charwood. Why didn't we think of that?!

Photo: Ole Hardwood in better days