Patt Johnson

pjohnson@dmreg.com

A Dong Vietnamese restaurant will reopen Thursday after a fire heavily damaged the popular eatery Aug. 16.

"I am a little nervous," said Neal Ngu, who owns the shop at 1511 High St. "We have been off for a while, and I don't know what to expect. It's hard to say if people will come back, but people loved us before."

He said he's had a stream of people stopping by the restaurant while it was being rebuilt to ask about the reopening.

To reward customers for their patience, Ngu will be offering free food between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. Thursday. Regular lunch and dinner hours will resume Friday, he said.

Firefighters were called to the restaurant early on a Sunday morning after a passing cyclist reported smoke coming from the building. Ngu has said he believes the fire started in the kitchen.

Little inside the restaurant could be saved, he said. He has insurance to cover the rebuilding and to help pay some employees during the closure.

Ngu said the family has had to dip into its savings to meet payroll and pay for reconstruction upgrades.

Ngu originally hoped to reopen within a few months, but construction delays pushed back the reopening, he said. He completed his final city inspections Wednesday.

"It's been a long six months," he said.

The inside of the rebuilt restaurant has a more contemporary feel, he said. The menu, prices and staff are all unchanged, he said.

If you go

Hours beginning Friday will be 10:30 a.m. Tuesday through Thursday; 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday; and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday.

Call 515-284-5632, visit www.adongrestaurant.com or find it on Facebook.