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A two-alarm fire at Evvia Estiatorio in downtown Palo Alto Thursday erupted when a flame above the restaurant's wood-fired rotisserie grill spread through "concealed combustible spaces to the roof," Fire Inspector Dave Shum wrote in an investigative report.

Shum said a gap between the grill's metal ventilation hood and brick fire box had allowed grease and heat to "escape into the interstitial space and accumulate over the years.

"Open flame or embers from wood/charcoal breached the back left corner of the fire box into interstitial space, causing the grease to ignite. The location of the fire was outside the coverage of the hood extinguishing system within spaces not reachable by fire sprinklers. Firefighters had to open significant areas of the wall and ceiling to ensure complete extinguishment," Shum wrote.

The fire was reported at approximately 2:30 p.m. and no one was injured, firefighters said.

It was the third restaurant fire in Palo Alto in the past three months, according to Gordon Simpkinson, hazardous materials specialist for the Palo Alto Fire Department.

"All three fires were associated with wood-burning grills or ovens, although each had different factors that caused the fire to spread. Fire inspectors are looking very closely at these types of cooking operations during inspections in light of these developments," Simpkinson wrote in an e-mail.

Sous chef Rito Castaneda said last Thursday he was in the kitchen when an employee looked up and saw smoke coming from one of the light fixtures in the ceiling. The staff called 911 and both lunch-time diners and employees evacuated the restaurant, he said.

At least six fire engines, plus trucks from Palo Alto and Santa Clara County responded to the incident at 420 Emerson St., according to Barbara Cimino, fire department spokesperson.

Crews extinguished the flames by at least 3:10 p.m., witnesses reported. In the aftermath, soaked tables and chairs littered the sidewalk, employees huddled together in the parking lot across the street, and firefighters worked on the roof and from a fire truck ladder extended over the building.

— Tyler Hanley