Fire engulfs Dennis Rodman’s restaurant

Christine Carrillo

A two-alarm fire consumed Dennis Rodman’s Newport Beach

restaurant, Josh Slocum’s Sunday afternoon causing an estimated

$100,000 in property damaged primarily to the restaurant’s interior,

Newport Beach Fire Department officials said.

Fire fighters managed to contain the blaze to the

2,500-square-foot fixture, but were unable to determine the cause,

which is currently under investigation.

The restaurant manager declined to comment.

Witnesses contacted the fire department after seeing large

quantities of smoke billowing from the restaurant located at 2601

West Coast Highway. Although the restaurant and nightclub is nestled

between two buildings, neither of were damaged

“My hostess told me to call 911 because Josh’s was smoking,” said

Dan Williams, manager at Joe’s Crab Shack. “But when I called they

were already aware of it.”

In a combined effort with the Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor

Patrol, the Fire Department managed to put out the fire in about 30

minutes, said Newport Fire Captain Glenn White.

For a two-alarm structural fire the number of fire engines and

trucks is increased for precautionary measures. Due to the

restaurant’s strange shape, which includes a vast amount of nooks and

crannies in the attics, and the close proximity to neighboring

buildings, the department increased the seriousness of the call,

White said.

Due to the large amount of combustibles, primarily being the

fabric of the furniture throughout the restaurant and the lack of

ventilation in the closed building, the heat of the fire and the

potential for a possible back draft grew, said Donna Boston, public

information officer for the fire department.

“They felt the windows and they were hot and sooty, that’s when

they realized their was a concern for a back draft,” she said.

Since the restaurant was closed, firefighters forced entry into

the restaurant from the front and rear, officials said. The majority

of the damage was at the rear of the restaurant where the harbor

patrol managed to pull up their fireboat and lend their hose to douse

the rear.

While the fire caused no injuries it did result in inconveniences

for both vehicles attempting to drive along Coast Highway as well as

those dinning at Joe’s Crab Shack.

“My customers have been pretty good about when I tell them they

can’t leave for a while,” Williams said, adding that many of them

were stuck there for at least an hour and a half.

* CHRISTINE CARRILLO is the news assistant. She may be reached at

(949) 574-4298 or by e-mail at christine.carrillo@latimes.com.