San Francisco firefighters were busy Tuesday morning, contending with two one-alarm fires, the earliest at 2165 Lombard Street and the other on Pier 28.
Tuesday’s first one-alarm fire erupted before sunrise, with the San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD) posting on social media just before 5 a.m. that first-responders were working on containing the blaze. Unfortunately, I started inside a beloved San Francisco institution: Mel’s Dinner.
*****Working Fire*****
1 alarm fire at 2165 Lombard St at Mel’s Drive In. Firefighters are on scene working to extinguish a fire that started in the flu area of the kitchen. Lombard St. between Fillmore and Steiner St is closed. Please Avon’s the area. #SFFD pic.twitter.com/sruzovRHLn
— SAN FRANCISCO FIRE DEPARTMENT MEDIA (@SFFDPIO) February 3, 2026
The fire was eventually contained before sunrise, but not quickly enough to save the 1950s-inspired interior or Mel’s Dinner. The 41-year-old restaurant, though not the first Mel’s Diner nor an extension of the Original Mel’s found elsewhere in California, was the first established in a planned revival of the diner brand after the OG Mel’s Drive-In on South Van Ness was demolished in 1985. The reimagined has grown a cult-like following for its retro-chic atmosphere and period-specific menu items,
San Francisco Fire Lieutenant Mariano Elias reported that the blaze caused no injuries; a grease fire is believed to have started the fire, spreading to the ceiling first before swallowing the restaurant. Elias says the fire caused “significant” damage, and the restaurant is expected to be closed for some time for repairs.
1-ALARM FIRE PIER 28
The San Francisco Fire Department is currently on the scene of a one-alarm fire at Pier 28 in San Francisco’s Embarcadero. The fire was reported shortly after 10:30 a.m. by multiple 911 callers. The San Francisco Police Department Marine unit arrived quickly… pic.twitter.com/2YGPCkwonw
— SAN FRANCISCO FIRE DEPARTMENT MEDIA (@SFFDPIO) February 3, 2026
Later Tuesday morning, SFFD responded to the day’s second one-alarm — this time at Pier 28. Multiple 911 calls came in for the waterfront blaze around 10:30 a.m., prompting fire crews to descend on the scene. Fire crews extinguished the fire within the hour, but traffic along the Embarcadero remained bumper-to-bumper until early afternoon, with traffic closed between Bryant and Brannan streets.
The cause of the fire is unclear and still under investigation. Those who found themselves in the wake of SF firefighters battling the blaze were privy to one of the City’s firefighting boats assisting first responders in putting out the flames.
