Mark Kurlyandchik and Robert Allen

Detroit Free Press Staff Writers

The last eight days have been an emotional seesaw of highs and lows for Corktown restaurant Katoi.

An early morning fire gutted the Thai-inspired eatery on Michigan Avenue and 17th, barely a week after it was named the No. 1 Best New Restaurant to open last year by the Free Press and just a few days after it was announced as a semifinalist for the Best New Restaurant category of the James Beard Awards.

Katoi Executive Chef Brad Greenhill has been on a research trip to Thailand for the last two weeks and was eating dinner halfway around the world when he heard the devastating news.

"It's hard to find words when something heartbreaking like this happens," Greenhill said in a statement via text message on behalf of the restaurant's ownership. "There are none really, other than 'resolve.' Katoi grew up and came to fruition with support from an amazing community with that very same attribute.

"With the love and support from our friends and neighbors, we'll rise again from the ashes...with a vengeance."

►Related: Best New Restaurant #1: Katoi, Detroit

There was an immediate outpouring of support for the restaurant on social media, as restaurateurs and other members of the industry offered to help however they could.

"I think we have a really, really strong restaurant community," said Sandy Levine, owner of Chartreuse Kitchen & Cocktails in Midtown. "I've seen little things like this happen before in other cities. The silver lining is that this is where people come together and help each other out quite a bit. ... Already, in a matter of a few hours, there are dozens if not hundreds of people who are saying, 'Let us know what we can do, how we can help.'"

(Continue reading below)

Levine said a number of Katoi staff members are former Chartreuse employees and he plans to reach out to them and others to offer some shifts while the restaurant rebuilds.

Katoi employs about 40 people.

When Gold Cash Gold Executive Chef Brendon Edwards was ousted from his former post at downtown's Standby restaurant, he became one of those 40.

Edwards said Greenhill and manager Courtney Henriette both quickly made sure he had a home in Katoi's kitchen while he looked for his next opportunity.

“This is an unfortunate setback, but knowing Brad he’s not going to stop," Edwards said. "The guy doesn’t stop. He’s a real chef that stays up late, wakes up early, keeps pushing and makes sure to have a drink with his crew at the end of the night. I have no doubt that he and Courtney are going to rebuild Katoi and make it just as good as it was and maybe even better, who knows.”

Edwards said he had spoken with a Katoi sous chef earlier in the day who appeared to be keeping a positive outlook.

"They were all hanging out at Honest? Johns this morning to kind of be a family," Edwards said. "They have insurance. It’s probably going to be a minute before they get fully up and running again, but the infrastructure is still there for the most part. The kitchen still looks like in workable shape. Really it's just rebuilding the aesthetics — the electric and that sort of thing. But they’ll get back there."

On Katoi's Facebook page, people left comments offering to help with the cleanup.

By Friday afternoon, a fund-raiser for Katoi employees was scheduled at MotorCity Wine from 2 to 7:15 p.m. Saturday, and a GoFundMe page was launched to contribute to lost employee wages.

Chad Rochkind, executive director of the Corktown Economic Development Corporation, said in a statement to the Free Press that the fire is a "punch in the gut," and a "reminder that Detroit has been dealing with the arson issue for a long time."

"Even as we are excited that development is happening in Corktown, we also have to address some deeper issues that impact all Detroiters, regardless of neighborhood," he said. "Safety is a Detroit concern. Education is a Detroit concern. Jobs are a Detroit concern. Public life is a Detroit concern. I'm heartened to see that Detroiters from all over the city have sent their best wishes to Katoi and to Corktown, and we want the rest of the city to know that we stand with them as well."

"While this is undeniably bad news, in the aftermath of this fire we are seeing that the power of neighborliness and love is stronger than the weakness of division and destruction," his statement said.

Nobody was injured in the fire reported at about 6:15 a.m. this morning that appears to have been set to cover a break-in by burglars stealing liquor, said Deputy Detroit Fire Commissioner David Fornell.

A tote bag of liquor was found by the back door.

Arson investigators remained on the scene early this morning and a review of surveillance-camera footage was underway.

Less than a mile away, Nemo's bar was also broken into in the wee hours of the morning according to a Detroit Police spokesperson. It's unclear whether the two break-ins were related.

Greenhill founded Katoi with Henriette as a pop-up serving Thai-style street food out of an immobile food truck at Two James Distillery in 2014. The restaurant then popped up in Ann Arbor for a few months while the long-delayed build-out of the former Willie's Garage was completed.

Along with third partner and New York City billboard businessman Philip Kafka, Greenhill and Henriette debuted their out-of-this-world Thai eatery at 2520 Michigan Ave. last March to near-immediate success. Two- to three-hour waits during busy weekend dinner hours have not been uncommon and the restaurant has garnered the attention of national tastemakers like celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson and Vogue magazine.

Free Press Staff Writer Elisha Anderson contributed to this report.