THE MEAT was unusually overcooked at one of Chiswick's finest restaurants this week.

Food-lovers were left distraught when they heard that the locally famous riverside eaterie Pissarros has been forced to close temporarily after a fire broke out in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The fire at the Corney Reach premises is thought to have been started by an electrical fault in an ice-maker at around 6am, at the back of the restaurant near the staff area.

Nobody was seriously injured in the incident, though manager Tiffany Rivette, who lives above the restaurant, was taken to hospital briefly as a precaution against smoke inhalation.

Flames were extinguished quickly by the fire brigade, despite them being initially thwarted by the lack of a hydrant on the private estate, and the low tide level of the Thames.

Two engines had attended the scene just minutes after being alerted by the restaurant's smoke alarm system.

One fireman quipped: "It was strange, but as I went in I found my self rushing towards the bar and asking for two bottles of Stella."

However, the resultant smoke damage and power blackout still ruined the food and wine stocks and has left the rest of the restaurant in need of a complete redecoration.

Directors of the restaurant say that the incident will cost them £10,000 a day just in lost revenue, but have vowed to their loyal customers that they will be back in service as soon-as-possible.

They had hoped to re-open by the weekend, but Director Tony Hallett, 60, said on Monday that the effort could take anything between 6-10 days.

"The smoke damage is awful - it looks very black and sooty - so it's difficult to asses exactly how long it will take," he said.

"However, there's no real structural damage.

"On Sunday we had 120 booked customers to ring up - we've found most of them alternative arrangements with other restaurants such as La Trompette. People have been very understanding.

"I would like to say that we wish to see all our customers back when we re-open."