Pizza oven catches fire at Costa Mesa restaurant

Firefighters had to interrupt dinner at a Costa Mesa restaurant Monday night when a pizza oven caught fire, according to authorities.

Crews evacuated the Pizzeria Ortica at 650 Anton Blvd. about 8 p.m. and began fighting the flames that likely started when residue in the oven’s flue ignited, Costa Mesa Fire Department spokesman Capt. Chris Coates said.

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FOR THE RECORD

11:37 a.m. April 12: An earlier version of this article incorrectly identified the fire’s location. Fire officials originally said the blaze was at 601 Anton Blvd. In fact, a caller at a TGI Fridays at 601 Anton Blvd. reported the fire, which was at a pizzeria at 650 Anton Blvd.

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It took 18 firefighters more than an hour to put out the blaze even though it was relatively small, according to the department. The flames were contained to the oven and flue, but firefighters worked slowly to avoid permanently breaking the oven, according to Coates.

“If you put too much water too fast, it will crack the ceramic oven, thus leaving the oven inoperable,” he said.

No one was hurt in the fire, but the restaurant will be closed until crews can clean up, Coates said. An estimated dollar amount of the damage wasn’t immediately available.

Pizzeria Ortica was back open for business Tuesday, according to General Manager Jason Scarborough.