WATERFORD TOWNSHIP, Mich. – A popular Oakland County restaurant was destroyed by a fire early Thursday morning.
The restaurant that caught fire is “Fork n’ Pint” on Cass Elizabeth Road in Waterford Township.
Restaurant is ‘total loss’
Waterford Township fire Chief Matthew Nye said his department received a call about the fire at 5:50 a.m. Thursday, May 1, 2025.
Firefighters were at the restaurant by 5:55 a.m., but the fire had already progressed too far.
“They were met with heavy fire in the attic and through the roof,” Nye said. “They tried to get inside and make an aggressive interior attack to stop it, but they were met with heavy flames and the building started collapsing on them, so they backed up and went defensive.”
Fire officials are investigating how the fire started.
“This is going to be a long investigation to figure it out,” Nye said.
Three tower trucks were sent to the scene.
“Unfortunately, the fire was too well involved, so they had to go defensive, so we’re stuck with a total loss,” Nye said.
No known injuries
Nye said nobody was found inside the restaurant.
“To the best of our knowledge, nobody was in there, so that’s a good thing,” Nye said.
You can watch the full interview with Nye below:
‘It’s sad’
Kristi Campbell, of West Bloomfield, lives right around the corner from the restaurant.
“This has been a Waterford landmark for a long time,” Campbell said. “I had my son’s graduation two years ago here. It’s sad to see what’s going on.”
Campbell said when she heard about the fire, she came over to see what happened.
“I could smell it a little bit from my house, and then the closer I got, I could definitely smell the presence of the smoke, not realizing it was going to be this bad,” Campbell said.
She said she used to go to the restaurant with her mother.
“I’ve eaten here, and they have great, wonderful food,” Campbell said. “It’s sad to see this staple of Waterford -- obviously it’s gone. It’s sad to see something that’s been here for a long time.”
You can watch the full interview with Campbell below:
