Kitchen at AJ’s Oasis Cafe in Meriden reopens after fire last year

MERIDEN — A downtown restaurant recently reopened its kitchen following an electrical fire last year.

AJ’s Oasis Cafe, 142 Hanover St., hosted a grand reopening Wednesday evening. City officials and firefighters who responded to the fire last year were invited to attend.

Last September, an short circuit caused a fire that damaged the bar’s kitchen and electrical system. Apartments on the second floor of the building were also damaged. There were no reported injuries.

The bar reopened in November, but the kitchen remained closed until earlier this summer.

Sandy Arnold, wife of AJ’s owner John Arnold, said the bar was forced to replace wires throughout the kitchen area. The kitchen remained closed until work was completed.

“Insurance held us up a lot,” she said.

John Arnold said he handled most of the construction himself.

“It’s been a quite a journey,” he said. “It’s a big relief to finally get it open. It was probably, without a doubt, the hardest thing I’ve ever done.”

When the kitchen was closed, head chef David Devoe cooked food remotely and served it buffet style at the bar.

“They couldn’t wait for us to open,” Sandy Arnold said of customers. “We missed the Super Bowl, all of football season. Everybody, they wanted the wings.”

Devoe said with the exception of the oven and two fryers, all appliances in the kitchen are new, including freezers and the broiler.

“It’s great, love it, back home,” Devoe said.

“It’s a huge relief,” John Arnold said. “Really pleased it’s reopened.”

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