The explosion is the latest in a series of incidents near Beijing that are often blamed on lax safety standards.
At least one person has been killed and 22 others injured in a suspected gas explosion at a restaurant in northern China.
The explosion occurred just before 8 a.m. (midnight Japan time) on Tuesday in the city of Sanhe, less than 50 kilometers (30 miles) east of the capital Beijing.
The explosion appeared to have been caused by a gas leak at the fried chicken shop, state broadcaster CCTV reported, adding that the injured were taken to hospital.
China has experienced a spate of fatal accidents in recent months, many of them due to lax safety standards and inadequate enforcement.
Rescue workers rushed to the scene of the Mikawa explosion, and the local Langfang Fire Department announced that 36 emergency vehicles and 154 personnel were dispatched.
Police closed roads and directed people to leave the area.
“The fire is now effectively under control and rescue operations are underway urgently.”
A video clip posted on Chinese social media platform Weibo showed destroyed building facades, many smashed cars and glass strewn on surrounding roads. Some objects were on fire.
Another video on Chinese social media seen by AFP showed the building completely collapsed, with debris strewn across the street.
Last month, at least 15 people were killed and 44 injured in a house fire in the eastern city of Nanjing.
In January, a fire at a store in the central city of Xinyu killed dozens of people, with state news agency Xinhua reporting that the cause of the fire was “illegal” use of fire by employees in the store's basement.
The fire occurred days after a fire broke out at a school in central Henan province, killing 13 schoolchildren while sleeping in a dormitory.
Domestic media reports suggest that the cause of the fire was an electric heating system.