Popular restaurant is gutted

Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2003 | 11:06 a.m.

A pre-dawn, three-alarm fire today destroyed a West Las Vegas restaurant that has been a popular hangout for movers and shakers in the local black community.

Las Vegas fire officials believe the fire smoldered for hours before sending flames bursting 40 feet into the air shortly before 5:30 a.m. H&H Bar-B-Q & More in the Heritage Square Shopping Center, at Martin Luther King Boulevard and Washington Avenue, was gutted, as was an adjacent boutique.

Two other businesses in the same strip mall suffered heavy heat and smoke damage, Las Vegas Fire Department spokesman Tim Szymanski said, placing the dollar loss at an estimated $250,000.

"This is my family's livelihood -- my parents invested their life's savings into this place -- and now it's gone," said Elbert Black, spokesman for the family business at 910 N. Martin Luther King Blvd. owned by Cassandra and Hank Black.

"My uncle called us, and my wife jumped up and said, 'The place is on fire,' " Elbert Black said. "My father about had a stroke. I'm still shaking. ... Hopefully we can rebuild, but maybe not here. You can't rebuild that."

Henry "Hank" Black was believed to have been the last person to leave the business about 1:30 a.m. this morning, his son said.

H&H went into business at its present location four years ago. Before that it was a street vending business at H Street and Owens Avenue and later at a local church.

The business's lineage and recipes date back to 1968, when Elbert's grandfather, Elbert Hicks, opened Hicks Bar-B-Q on Jackson Avenue, once the business district of West Las Vegas.

Through puffy eyes, Elbert Hicks watched fire hoses douse the final embers of the caved-in roof, shaking his head.

"There is not a whole lot more I can add to that," he said.

Hicks said, however, that H&H did at one time have electrical problems the family had reported to a landlord. However, Elbert Black cautioned that it is not known where the fire started or how it started or whether electrical wiring had anything to do with it.

Szymanski said the origin and cause will not be determined until firefighters can get into the business later today. No one was in the building at the time and there were no injuries, he said.

Szymanski said experts will be brought in to determine the extent of structural damage to the building, including the heavily damaged attic areas of the businesses that were not destroyed by flames.

Elbert Black said his family's business was insured, but probably not for the amount of the loss.

In addition to all of the equipment and fixtures, at least 15 cases of ribs and 15 cases of catfish burned, Black said, noting that the weekly food shipment had recently arrived.

The Blacks leased space in the strip mall from SREI MLK and Washington Limited Liability Co., which, according to incorporation records filed with the Nevada Secretary of State's office, is at 5616 Estrella Mountain Court. The resident agent is listed as Janette Bunch.

According to the county assessor's office, SREI acquired the property from Nucleus Investments in February.

Attempts to reach SREI and Nucleus Investments today were not successful.

H&H chef Austin Tablada was walking to work shortly before 5:30 a.m. to do prep work for the 7 a.m. opening when a fire engine sped by.

"I was wondering where he was headed to in such a hurry and when I arrived I said, 'Oh no, this can't be happening,' " said Tablada, who was recently hired. "Smoke was pouring out of the top of the building and I knew it was gone."

Black said H&H was more than a place that employed 15 people, including family members. It was a popular gathering place in the community.

"People came from all areas of Las Vegas to eat here," he said. "The Urban Chamber of Commerce had meetings here." Church groups met there on Sundays for brunch, he said.

Political leaders also met there as did "anyone who enjoys good barbecue, soul food and catfish," Tablada said.

Black said his chef's knives valued at $500 were in the building and presumed destroyed. He did not have them insured.

State Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas, who held many of his political events at H&H Bar-B-Q, said he enjoyed the baked chicken and mustard greens after many a Sunday church service. The news of the fire, he said, "disturbs many of us."

"It was a place you could ... take your friends and talk about things," he said.

Las Vegas City Councilman Lawrence Weekly, in whose ward the restaurant operated, said the loss of H&H is "yet another setback" toward efforts to revitalize West Las Vegas.

"First, my heart goes out to the family because that was their bread and butter," said Weekly, who enjoyed the restaurant's catfish and vegetable dishes and ate there just last week. "My only hope is that they can get back on their feet and prosper.

"As for the community, it seems that every time we take a step forward something like this happens and we are forced to take two steps backward."

Angie Flowers, owner of Sight & Sound in the adjacent strip mall said, "this is devastating because everybody in this area supported each other and depended on each other. I ate here every day. It's a terrible loss."

Like many at the scene, Flowers heard about the fire when she turned on the early morning TV news.

"All they said was there was a fire at Washington and Martin Luther King," she said. "When you hear something like that, you just throw on your clothes and get down there and see what's happening."

Flowers said the feelings she had upon arrival were mixed -- relieved it was not her business but "so sad to see something like this on your street."

A woman described by onlookers as the owner of 1st Lady Boutique, which also was destroyed, stood by in a black dress and fuzzy animal slippers, stared intently at the damage and declined to be interviewed.

Shoe Nique and the J&D Mini Market, both south of H&H, suffered heavy heat and smoke damage, Szymanski said.

About 75 firefighters from 20 units fought the fire that took about an hour to bring under control, Szymanski said.

Sun reporter Timothy Pratt contributed to this story.

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