DAVENPORT, Iowa (KWQC) -- Lunardi's Italian Restaurant in Davenport is set to reopen this week. The restaurant had a fire a few days before Christmas.
There will be a ribbon cutting and soft opening Wednesday, then it will officially reopen to the public on Thursday.
A few days before Christmas, the back room of the restaurant went up in flames after a fire started in what used to be the kitchen.
"With all of our salad oil, olive oil, it was like fuel to the fire when it started," remembers Lunardi.
At first it was hard to see past the destruction.
"For about the first two months, I didn't know if we were going to get back open or now," says Lunardi.
But with the help of the community and a driving force from up above, things are looking up.
"My Uncle Terry that started this was a huge driving force and a huge mentor to me. I feel if we couldn't reopen, it would be a huge letdown. It's just not in the cards to let that happen," says Lunardi.
And now...the follow-through to reopen is near! Here's a link to Lunardi's Official Reopening Event on Facebook
Sources: KWQC-TV6 and WQAD