Water for Chocolate chef/owner Sean Guy said he hopes to have his Upper Fells Point restaurant open within six weeks.
The Lombard Street restaurant suffered water damage resulting from a March 20 fire that caused more extensive damage to the building's upper floors, where Guy lives.
Neither Guy nor his children, who live with him part-time, were in the apartment when the fire started. But Guy's 3-year-old pug, Dirty Rice, died in the fire, which was caused when a dryer exploded.
Within hours of the fire, a "Water for Chocolate Fire Relief" page was created on GoFundMe, a do-it-yourself fundraising website. As of Monday afternoon, the page had raised more than $12,000 -- more than twice its original goal.
Neighboring businesses have scheduled additional fundraisers in support of Guy. The first of them, on Thursday, will be held at Hot Tomatoes II, a pizza restaurant in Upper Fells Point. The second, on April 9, will be hosted by the Fells Point bar Bad Decisions. Proceeds from sales at both venues will be donated to Guy, who will be cooking some of his signature Southern-inspired comfort food.
Guy said he's looking forward to the events, where he'll be able to show guests his appreciation.
"I want to thank them for showing the extent of love they did when this happened and to let them know what's happening with the future of the restaurant," Guy said.
Bad Decisions owner John Reusing said helping Guy was an easy decision.
"I've worked with Sean in the past. He's a nice guy, and [Water for Chocolate] a really nice business," Reusing said "It's just the neighborly thing to do."
To help with organizing and publicizing the fundraiser, Reusing contacted Elsa Medhin, a community manager for the customer-review site Yelp. Medhin said that Guy has participated in Yelp-sponsored events and Water for Chocolate is a favorite of the site's users.
"I am a big fan of [Guy] personally," Medhin said. "He embraced Baltimore as a transplant. Just like I did. We talked about how much we both love Charm City."
Guy, a native of Ontario, Canada, moved to Baltimore from Brooklyn, N.Y., which he speaks of as his hometown.
Guy said that his insurance is covering the repairs to the building and the first-floor restaurant space. He will be using the raised funds, he said, to offset the losses from having his business closed. Guy said that the demolition of the damaged area began Thursday.
"Since Monday, I've been in a really good head space," Guy said. "I'm seeing the space change."
Thursday's fundraiser at Hot Tomatoes II starts at 6 p.m. The April 9 fundraiser at Bad Decisions is from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.