Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Fire-hit popular Chinese sets date to reopen
THE reopening plan for an Alyth Chinese takeaway has been revealed.
Fortune Palace has been closed since February 2020, when it was damaged in a fire that began in flats above the Airlie Street building.
Now it is set to reopen to please locals who feared they had seen the last of the popular takeaway.
Earlier this month a sign appeared in the window saying it would be open again soon.
Anna Tian, whose family are landlords of Fortune Palace, said the meals will still be cooked by the same chef, the tenant Ming Chen.
“We are planning to reopen at the end of the month if all goes to plan,” Anna said.
“We are just waiting for the plumber to finish the work.
“The tenant took over a year before the fire started so he will return and it will be the same as before.
“He has been working part-time as a chef in Dundee while it has been closed. It will be the same chefs and the food should be the same quality.”
The fire was a major incident in the Perthshire town.
Rescuers spent more than eight hours tackling the blaze, which caused major structural damage to the upstairs premises, destroying most of the roof of the building on the corner of David Street.
The pavement outside the premises was inaccessible to pedestrians for the next three years due to scaffolding protecting the building.
“It is crazy that it has been closed for four years since the fire,” added Anna, whose mother used to run the takeaway before leasing it out.
“The fire upstairs happened due to an issue with a blanket and then the roof came off.
“Soon afterwards Covid came along, and for the first two years it was hard finding tradesmen to come to the shop.
“And since then the whole thing has been dragging on.
“I don’t know why it has taken so long but, fingers crossed, it will be back open by the end of the month.”