“We are closed at this time.  We are working on it,” said the unidentified man who answered the door at The Grill Room & Bar, 86 Exchange Street this moriing. He was referring to a fire late last night to which the Portland Fire Department responded quickly.  The restaurant in the Old Port is owned by Harding Smith, who also owns The Front Room on Munjoy Hill.

When the Fire Department arrived last night around 10:20 pm firefighters found fire coming from the roof and in the rear of the building.  The fire was considered under control at 10:56 pm.  There were no reported injuries to firefighters or occupants of the building.  Roads were shut down in the area during operations, but were reopened early this morning.

The fire has been investigated and the cause has been determined to be accidential, originating from cooking activities and extending into the ventilation system.

The Tondoor restaurant next door at 88 Exchange Street was not affected by the fire and is open this evening.