Kelowna

Owners of three businesses on Ellis Street in downtown Kelowna don't know when they will be able to re-open as the result of a fire Tuesday night.

Photo: Wayne Moore - Castanet

Knife and Slice owner Navgit Sandhu in front of his business Wednesday morning

The fire apparently started in the Knife and Slice Cafe at 1443 Ellis.

Two adjacent businesses, the Log Barn and Kelowna Hot Yoga Studio, suffered smoke damage and were not open Wednesday morning.

Fire Investigators at the scene of the fire Wednesday morning were still unable to say just how the fire started or how long the businesses would be affected.

Business owners were also on site following the fire.

The owner of the Log Barn was seen taking perishable items from the store.

Those items will be taken to their store in Armstrong.

The fire did start in the kitchen area of Knife and Slice. Business owner Navgit Sandhu, says he is also anxious to know the official cause.

"I have no clue what happened or how it got started because I just got a call at around 8 p.m. (Tuesday) that there was a fire here," says Sandhu.

"That's what it seems like (started in his kitchen) on the left side of the kitchen where the ovens and everything are."

Sandhu has been in business for about six months and, while he doesn't know what it will do to the business long-term, he does have weddings coming up

"One is the day after tomorrow and there is a wedding cake to be done for a hundred people. I don't know what I'm doing. I may have to rent a kitchen and make one for that wedding at least."

The business makes cakes, pastries, desserts and coffees.

Sandhu says he wants to get it back up and running again.

"It's going to be tough on me for sure."