A fire heavily damaged Skippy’s Route 66 Restaurant near Leasburg, Missouri, earlier this month, but the owner has vowed to rebuild once he gets the insurance settlement.
According to the Cuba Free Press newspaper, the fire occurred after the business had closed for the night:
The dining and bar area was completely destroyed, with the fire reaching into the roof trusses in that main part of the building. Other areas of the restaurant, such as the outdoor dining patio, new restrooms, and kitchen, suffered some smoke and water damage, but they were not destroyed by the fire itself, as it was contained to the main part of the structure. […]
Owner Skip Sheleski was at the restaurant on Monday morning, awaiting the arrival of an insurance adjuster. Sheleski was very upset about the fire at his restaurant and had tears in his eyes as he overlooked the damages to the inside of the building. “Through the years, we’ve made it nicer and nicer. We’ve tried to upgrade the building and make it better for our customers,” he said. “Now, we’ll just have to rebuild and make it nicer again.”
Sheleski told the newspaper the fire started in a wastebasket behind the bar.
The Free Press posted a photo of the interior damage on its Facebook page:
Skippy’s originally was the Coachlight Inn, which was opened by retired railroad worked Joe White and his wife Loretta in 1970. They sold it in 1988. After a series of short-time owners, Sheleski bought the place in 2000, renamed it the Route 66 Inn, and it has become a favorite of locals and Route 66 travelers alike.
Skippy’s isn’t in Leasburg proper, but a few miles north. The restaurant sits at the corner of old Route 66 and Route H.
(Hat tip to Tonya Pike; image of Skippy’s Route 66 Restaurant via Facebook)
Your posts to my email now have no pictures, iPad or iPhone. What/why the change?
I changed nothing. You probably need to change your email settings to allow photos.