By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Thursday, January 23, 1992
The Record (New Jersey) | 1 Star | NEWS | Page B01
Celestino’s, the Edgewater restaurant that opened 10 months ago at the site of the old Barge Inn, was destroyed by a pre-dawn fire Wednesday, authorities said.
A married couple who woke up to smoke and flames were routed from their second-floor apartment, but no one was injured, said Lt. Louis Gotthold of the Edgewater Fire Department.
The first firefighters who arrived at the scene, shortly after the first alarm sounded at about 1:20 a.m., saw flames shooting out of the windows in the three-story, wood-frame structure at 1020 River Road, Gotthold said. Firefighters worked hard to keep it from spreading to surrounding buildings, he said.
“It burned out of control for two hours, at least,” he said.
Gotthold said the Bergen County arson squad is investigating the blaze to determine its cause.
The fire was reported by a security guard from a high-rise across the street from the Italian restaurant, Gotthold said. About 60 firefighters from Edgewater, Fairview, Cliffside Park, and Fort Lee fought the blaze, he added.
Jack Warren, a former Edgewater Planning Board chairman and a manager of the Barge Inn for about six months, said the building was so old that it probably would not have taken much to ignite it.
In numerous incarnations, the inn had a reputation as a rough-and-tumble saloon that often caused headaches for borough officials. It was the last of the once-numerous saloons on the town’s 2 1/2-mile waterfront.
Celestino’s, as conceived by Celestino and Mario Genciarelli of Paterson, aimed to be a high-class restaurant. Warren said the restaurant appeared to live up to the hopes its owners and borough officials had for it.
“I haven’t had a whole lot of contact with the establishment since the bar closed, other than to eat there occasionally,” Warren said. “They changed the decor somewhat. They seemed to be doing fairly well.
“The food was good and the atmosphere was really nice. The management seemed to be doing a good job, and it was a pleasant place. ”
The Genciarellis could not be reached for comment.
Developer Lennard Schwartz, who owned the building, envisioned an artists colony in the space above the restaurant, and 10 studios were created. A rear second-floor apartment was occupied by the only known residential tenants of the building. The tenants were staying with friends Wednesday, officials said.
The damage was so severe that the two top floors were being torn down Wednesday, Gotthold said.
Caption: PHOTO – AL PAGLIONE / THE RECORD – A crew removing debris after the Wednesday fire that destroyed Celestino’s on River Road in Edgewater. No one was hurt in the blaze.
ID: 17366792 | Copyright © 1992, The Record (New Jersey)
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