An early morning fire at Yampa Garage Biscuits & BBQ has left owners Marlene and Craig Saleeby scrambling to reopen this summer and customers in Yampa hungry for Craig’s Southern biscuits and authentic barbecue, which are on the sidelines for now.

“We are hoping to be open the first week of September,” Marlene said Monday morning. “We’re still waiting for insurance on both ends to come through and to finish up the cleanup.”

The Saleebys lease the space. They said their landlord has her own insurance, and they have business insurance. The fire caused smoke damage that will require the panels and drywall to be replaced as well as repainting.

“They’ve done some cleanup,” Marlene said. “Right now, we’re just in a holding pattern, waiting and hoping we can get reopened before the season is done.”

The small fire broke out around 4 a.m. July 27.  Marlene said she believes it might have been caused by the rags the restaurant uses to clean up food and grease.

“We washed those rags, we dried them and the last thing we did was put them in the restaurant, which we’ve done for years,” Marlene said. “Then overnight they smoldered and caught on fire.”

The Yampa and Oak Creek fire departments responded to the blaze at 70 Moffat Ave. in Yampa, which Marlene said could have been worse if the fire had not melted hoses that provide water to the kitchen.

“It wasn’t so much that it needed to be put out, but the smoke needed to be cleared out of the area,” Marlene said. “What happened is, once it caught on fire, the fire itself melted some lines that we have for water and that’s what put it out.”

She said the ironic thing was she and Craig had just catered a benefit for the Yampa and Oak Creek fire departments, and they were the ones that responded to the fire.

Still, the closure has been difficult for the Saleebys, who rely on the money the restaurant brings in for their livelihood.

Marlene and Craig moved to Yampa couple of years ago to be closer to her parents, who have lived in the area for 30 years. Craig was originally from North Carolina and brought his love for barbecue and making good food with him.

The couple has been in the restaurant business for more than 10 years, and they owned and operated a barbecue place in Moab, Utah, before arriving in Yampa.

“The community has been so warm and supportive,” Marlene said. “They’re so excited to have us here, and we have people come from Steamboat Springs, Eagle and even Kremmling — they come from all over the place.”

A GoFundMe page has been set up by Mark Breit to help raise money to support the Saleebys as they navigate through insurance claims and look to reopen their restaurant in the near future.

“We are in the process of re-opening and hired a professional cleaning company to help with the fire mitigation,” Yampa Garage Biscuits & BBQ posted on Facebook. “Thank you for your support Yampa. We will be back, and stronger.”