A New Jersey eatery announced Tuesday it will be shutting down temporarily after a small fire damaged its kitchen.
Harry’s Daughter, a well-known Caribbean restaurant in Jersey City, took to social media to announce they are closing “until further notice” due to a fire that took place Monday.
“We experienced a small fire, but thankfully, everyone is safe and we are okay,” the post read. “We’ll share updates as soon as we receive the all-clear to reopen. Thank you for your support and well wishes — it means the world to us."
The restaurant expressed its gratitude to the Jersey City Fire Department for responding quickly in the post.
Owner Ria Ramkissoon told NJ Advance Media on Tuesday the fire could have been much worse, but the damage was still significant.
“It was just in our kitchen but our chef caught it on time. He actually put it out but it damaged the hood and went into the exhaust system,” Ramkissoon said. “Everything was contained so when the fire department came, they didn’t have to use any water or anything. But it was just a lot of smoke and the hood system is completely gone.”
A kitchen hood is a device containing a fan that hangs above a stovetop and helps provide adequate ventilation for cooking.
The extent of damage and timetable for reopening is currently unclear. Ramkissoon said she will have a better idea of what needs to be fixed by the end of the week. But she confirmed the building suffered no exterior damage.
“We are completely overwhelmed, like beyond overwhelmed with support,” Ramkissoon said. “The support from the community, from the neighborhood and even officials has been amazing.”
Harry’s Daughter is popular for merging traditional and modern Caribbean flavors with dishes like jerk egg rolls, banana rum flambé French toast, smoked herring caesar salad, jerk chicken flatbreads and more.
Harry’s Daughter landed on NJ.com’s list of New Jersey’s 21 best Black-owned restaurants to try in 2025.
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Christopher Burch can be reached at cburch@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter: @SwishBurch. Find NJ.comon Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us atnj.com/tips/.