UPDATE: Fri, June 29 — A June 16 fire at Zelda’s caused extensive damage and the restaurant will not reopen as planned, owner Zelda Angelfire has announced in a statement on the Zelda’s website.
The restaurant had been open for 15 years in three different locations.
“This is the third location for Zelda’s since we first opened on Wellesley Street in 1997 and the third time the business has been built from the ground up,” Angelfire says in the statement. “Unfortunately due to the capital and energy required to start all over again we have regrettably decided not to re-open.”
June 18 — Zelda Angelfire is not going to let a little fire permanently close the doors to her landmark Yonge St restaurant.
Although, sadly, the fire will shut down Zelda’s Living Well for the busiest week of the year: Pride.
Flames ripped through the legendary drag bar after management closed it on June 15 at around 3 am.
That night, Angelfire tweeted, “Like a broken heel makes you fall down in the middle of a number, we have every intention of getting back up and werking it!”
No one was hurt in the blaze and there was no structural damage, she says. On June 18 Angelfire will release more information about the cause of the fire and details around Zelda’s reopening.
The fire is not suspicious, she says, and there is no police investigation. “It happened after we closed,” she says. “We will not be open for Pride, and that’s a total fuckin’ piss-off.”
There has been an outpouring of support from friends and regulars, Angelfire says. “I have had a ton of email and Facebook support from the community, which I really appreciate. That’s been wonderful, and it’s really helped me during this time.”
Most of the damage is contained to the main floor, she says. Much of the trademark kitschy memorabilia that adorned the walls is likely salvageable. “Everything is damaged, but I think we can save most of it. It’s repairable.”
Why you can trust Xtra
