Nu-Way Weiners vows to rebuild in time for 100th anniversary

Flames shooting 20 feet from the roof of Nu-Way Weiners were no match for the burning optimism of its co-owners early Friday morning.

As Jim Cavacias and Spyros Dermatas watched their nearly century-old business burn, they looked ahead to better days.“There’s an old Greek saying that a lot of good comes from bad, and here’s a pure case,” Cavacias said. “There’s going to be a lot of good that comes from this.”

Both men shed some tears outside 430 Cotton Ave. in the hours after the fire was reported just before 3 a.m. Friday.

Macon-Bibb County Fire Chief Marvin Riggins said the first crews found heavy, black smoke rising from the stretch of storefronts in the 400 block of Cotton Avenue, across from the towering Willie C. Hill Annex Building.

“Upon their initial ingress into that building, the fire was above their heads into the attic space,” Riggins said. “The fire had really spread from the Nu-Way building all the way across to the two doors down.”

Flames quickly ate through the roof of the 120-year-old building that included an empty store front on the left side of the building, Nu-Way’s corporate office in the middle and the old-style restaurant with its nostalgic counter at the right.

With fears of a collapse, crews retreated and brought in dueling aerial ladders to attack the flames from overhead.

“The building was pretty well consumed at that time,” Riggins said.

The fire escalated as other units were called.

Crews leaving Oglethorpe Street headquarters could see flames as soon as they turned onto First Street, the chief said.

Firefighters were able to keep fire from spreading to the Spivey, Pope, Green & Greer law firm next door at 438 Cotton Ave.

Fire hoses were draped over the window sills of the second story of the legal offices to the right of the popular eatery.

“We’ve got a lot of smoke and water damage to our building, but structurally it appears to be sound,” said attorney George Greer. “We’re just grateful nobody was hurt.”

He expected the firm and its 20 employees to open in a temporary location within 24 hours.

“Everything that we’ve got is replaceable and most everything is packed up already,” Greer said after inspecting the smoke and water damage. “Our server being up is the big thing. That’s a big break for us.”

Greer’s partner, David Pope, rescued his prized guitars from his office at first daylight.

With his house on the market, he figured the instruments would be safer at the office.

“I’m about to sing the blues, here,” Pope jokingly said as he and another man carried the guitars away.

He could still smile, knowing his “baby,” a 1963 Gibson guitar, was not damaged.

“It’s OK. They were safe,” he said.

Pope also recovered his handmade Augustino and Larrivée guitars.

The Nu-Way owners were not as lucky.

A SCORCHED ICON

Flames from the fire gutted the restaurant, office and the warehouse that backed up to the alley behind the building.

From the Cotton Avenue side, only the vacant storefront with its broken windows hinted of the calamity.

Before dawn, Nu-Way’s owners climbed to the top of a nearby parking deck where the magnitude of the blaze was apparent.

The charred roof remnants barely veiled the blackened boards and rubble that was one of the region’s best-loved eateries.

“That really got my gut when we saw that,” said Emily Dermatas, Spyros’ wife.

Her husband choked back tears as he talked about the outpouring of support he’s already received, including a call offering assistance from Jake Fincher of Fincher’s BBQ.

“Our families go back 70 years,” said Spyros Dermatas, his voice cracking with emotion.

“Macon is a great community,” Emily Dermatas said.

Both husand and wife were grateful the fire happened in the middle of the night, when no one was in the building.“God is merciful,” Emily Dermatas said.

Still, the pain of loss was just beginning to set in.

“There’s a lot of memorabilia from the ‘30s, ‘40s and ‘50s,” Spyros Dermatas said.

Gone is booth No. 2, where Oprah Winfrey munched on the famous chili dogs during her “Favorite Things” taping tour at the nearby Macon City Auditorium in 2007.

Pictures of the visit hung on the wall to mark the occasion.

Collages of photographs from Oprah’s famous lunch were duplicated, Dermatas said.

“We have a picture in every Nu-Way, so Oprah still lives on,” he said.

The Friday the 13th blaze hit on payday for the company’s workers.

Dermatas was in the middle of the street, talking on his cellphone to arrange for duplicate checks to replace those burned in the fire. He wanted to make sure his workers would not go without a pay check.

He expected to be able to reassign the 18 displaced Nu-Way workers to the company’s other eight locations while repairs are made.

Assistant manager of the Cotton Avenue restaurant, Josh Moore, was at the fire scene early Friday.

“I never thought when I locked up (Thursday) night that it would be my last time going in there,” Moore said.

Although the extensive damage to the building can complicate efforts to pinpoint a cause, Riggins said fire investigators have begun their probe by talking to firefighters first on the scene.

It appears the fire began in the warehouse portion at the back of the building, possibly in the upper floor or attic, according to the earliest thoughts.

Although the inside is a total loss, Riggins expected repairs could be made to the facade and the shell of the building.Once the debris cools, inspectors will determine whether the outer walls are sound, he said.

The owners were particularly grateful they recently opted not to reduce their insurance coverage in an effort to cut costs.One of them prophetically asked, “What if we have a fire?”

While watching the flames, their concern was for the safety of those fighting the fire.

“The buildings can be replaced, but you can’t replace human life,” Dermatas said. “They’ve been very careful. Our thoughts and prayers are with the firemen at this point to make sure everyone is OK.”

As firefighters on aerial ladders continued to pour water on hot spots from above, smoke stains on the inside of the restaurant’s large window clouded the view of the damage.

On the outside, bright pink cherry blossoms rimmed the logo in anticipation of this month’s Cherry Blossom Festival.“We just had them painted,” Cacavias said.

The businessmen had been talking about making improvements to the building, which had three layers of flooring but could never find a good time to close down.

Now, the men are already making plans to rebuild and reopen in time for Nu-Way’s centennial celebration in February 2016.

“We’ll start rebuilding and get ready for the next 100 years,” said Emily Dermatas, who stepped up to comfort her grieving husband. “It’s going to be better, baby.”

Nu-Way has been serving up its famous hotdogs, hamburgers and soft drinks with flaky ice at that location for 99 years and two weeks.

The iconic “Weiner Stand” sign was still standing over the front door.

“They saved the neon sign. Thank God,” Cacavias said.

“They saved the sign. Absolutely,” Dermatas echoed.

The Nu-Way owners and neighboring attorneys had nothing but praise for firefighters’ efforts.

“We’ve got the best fire department in the state and in the southeast, probably,” Dermatas said.

While watching the crews work, they wished they could have been more help.

“If only we were open, we would have made them breakfast,” Cacavias said.

Telegraph Photo Editor Woody Marshall contributed to this report. To contact writer Liz Fabian, call 744-4303.

This story was originally published March 13, 2015 at 4:58 AM with the headline "Nu-Way Weiners vows to rebuild in time for 100th anniversary."