THE owner of a historic city restaurant that was gutted by fire has vowed to reopen its doors.

Investigators are still probing the cause of the blaze at The Buttery in Glasgow's Anderston in the early hours of Christmas Eve.

But owner Ian Fleming, chairman of Glasgow Restaurateurs' Association, believes it was caused by an electrical fault in the upmarket eaterie's kitchen.

He said: "It's not in the best of condition now. The kitchen has been gutted and part of the roof has gone.

"The remainder of the building is smoke and water-damaged.

"The cause of the fire is technically still undetermined, but it's believed to have been a fault in the kitchen.

"Everyone from the restaurateurs' association has been very supportive.

"You hear about these things happening to other people, but you never think it's going to happen to you."

Nobody was injured in the fire, which took hold at around 2am - an hour after the last customers had gone home.

But residents in flats above the restaurants were evacuated while fire crews dampened down the smouldering building for more than six hours.

The eaterie in Argyle Street, which dates to 1856, has been rated seventh best place to eat in the world by a respected restaurant guide.

And Mr Fleming, who took over the business in 2002, vowed the Glasgow institution would reopen within months.

He said: "We will either look at a new site or refurbish the building.

"We plan to open again in three or four months, but may relocate The Buttery experience somewhere else in the short term."

The award-winning restaurant is renowned for its oak panelled and stained glass interior, which fortunately survived the blaze.

It has been praised by food critics and restaurant buffs, including rocker Alex Kapranos, of Glasgow band Franz Ferdinand.

More than 250 customers had booked over the festive period and many will be offered alternative bookings at the Lake of Menteith Hotel in the Trossachs, which Mr Fleming co-owns with celebrity chef Nick Nairn.

In February last year, Mr Fleming announced he was to sell the eaterie, which prides itself on its "refined, brasserie-style ambience" and a gourmet menu.

But six months later he took it off the market and instead threw open its doors offering cookery lessons to the public.

The fire at The Buttery followed a massive blaze at nearby restaurant Cafe India, which burned down on December 17.