The fire started about 7:45 p.m. in the attic and engulfed the building before firefighters arrived. There were some 20 patrons inside when the fire began, but they all made it out safely, thanks to the help of some off-duty firefighters.

It turns out, an off-duty firefighter was just getting off the Kingston ferry and noticed the flames. He raced over and went inside to begin evacuations, only to find there was an off-duty Seattle firefighter already inside having dinner.

"He sensed something was going on; smelled smoke," said Michele Laboda with Kitsap Fire and Rescue. "Someone said there was something on the roof. He investigated a bit, found there was indeed a problem and set about getting people out of this restaurant full of diners and bar patrons."

Everyone got out, but the popular restaurant of 23 years is a total loss.

Fire investigators are still looking into the cause, but say there were roofers working on the roof earlier Tuesday.

At the height of the fire, the flames leaping from the building were visible for miles and several people living in Edmonds and Shoreline called to report seeing the blaze from across the water.

The blaze even affected the nearby Kingston ferry service. Washington State Ferry spokeswoman Susan Harris said that ferry service was suspended for a time while crews battled the nearby blaze.

They did restart westbound service from Edmonds to Kingston later that night, but waited until Wednesday morning to resume the eastbound runs from Kingston to Edmonds.

There's no word yet whether the owner will cut his losses, or use the insurance money to rebuild.