WILKES-BARRE, Pa. -- The Valley Diner on Kidder Street in Wilkes-Barre was destroyed by flames Sunday night.
Firefighters continued to put out hot spots Monday morning.
Fire officials said the flames broke out around 10:30 p.m. after the business had closed for the night.
There was no one inside at the time.
"All I could see was just giant flames going through the sky. I couldn't see anything else, just flames and smoke,” said Devin Ringler of Wilkes-Barre.
Firefighters battled the blaze as long as they could on the inside before pulling out for their own safety.
The diner roof collapsed.
"There was just way too much fire, we had to go defensive. Incident commander pulled our crews outside,” said Wilkes-Barre Fire Chief Jay Delaney.
The Valley Diner opened in January.
Fire officials said the owner was on scene as the place burned Sunday night.
A city fire inspector was called in to investigate and surveyed the rubble from a ladder truck.
"There was a lot of flames a lot of smoke and it was just heartbreaking just to see one of our favorite restaurants just be destroyed like that,” said Jeffrey Harvey of Plymouth.
City officials said the diner is so badly damaged, the building will have to be torn down.