OLCOTT, N.Y. (WKBW) — A kitchen fire over the holiday weekend at the Brownie’s Custard Stand location in Olcott has forced the popular ice cream stand to close until repairs are made.
For co-owners Greg Stenis and Eileen Neisen, their Memorial Day evenings came with a worrisome call. Their own employees picked up the phone to tell them that their location at Lakeview Village Shops in Olcott was on fire.
"The girls called me and said there’s smoke coming out of the side of the building," Neisen said.
The Monday fire left the building's interior with a burned-up grill top and a small fire inside the walls. Outside the building, firefighters had to cut holes in the siding to make sure that the fire was completely out.
All employees made it out of the building. Nobody was injured.
Stenis is currently waiting to hear back from their insurance company, but he estimates the kitchen fire is going to cost them a few thousand dollars.
WATCH: 'Thankful it is fixable': Memorial Day fire closes Brownie’s Olcott Location
For Stenis and Neisen, the most inconvenient part of the fire is the timing.
"Friday, Saturday, Sunday were kind of rainy, cloudy, cold, so you have a pretty crumby weekend, business-wise," Stenis said. "Finally, on Monday, the weather is perfect… And then that happens. It’s part of life, I guess."
"It was our first very busy day [of the year] in Olcott," Neisen said. "I’m just thankful it is something that is fixable, and nobody got hurt."
Brownie’s will continue to be closed for the time being, but Stenis and Neisen tell me that they’re hopeful it won’t be for long.
Stenis: “I’m hoping [we reopen in] a week, maybe [sooner].”
Q: “Is there a chance you guys could reopen and not have the grill ready?”
Stenis: “Possibly, there was talk of that with the town, just open for ice cream.”
In the meantime, the owners tell me that they’re looking out for their employees who are now out of a job by offering them additional shifts at the Wilson location.
Stenis and Neisen encourage anybody who wants to help them out to pop in at the Wilson location on Harbor Street for some food and ice cream.
