CB1100 Monthly Photo Challenge

[Gone in 60]

Took a quick detour on the way to work this morning, becuase I really wanted to shoot a picture of my bike with this place, and it will be in the 90s on the ride home.

This is Angelo’s & Vinci’s, a well-known Italian restaurant in Fullerton, CA. It’s been one of my favorites for many years. The food is great, and the atmosphere is very whimsical and theatrical. The owner had told me that it was a dance hall many decades ago. It has a supposedly haunted dungeon (an underground passageway with spooky mannequins) that guests can walk through, along with narrow, hidden passageways leading to private rooms.

Years ago, I had started seeing a girl in the local area, and as Angelo’s & Vinci’s was one of my tried-and-true early date locations, we went there for dinner. Everything was going well, but during dinner, she put her fork down several times, and went into what appeared to be a catatonic state.

After she did this a couple of times, I asked her if she was ok. She said “There are many spirits in this room… I should probably let you know that I can communicate with the dead. There’s a little girl who can’t find her parents.”

Ok… sorta funky, but not a deal breaker in my book… yet. This went on a few more times before we finished dinner. I had parked my truck next to the adjoining Fox Theater, a classic movie house which, at the time was long closed and was perpetually seeking donations to renovate.

As we got to my truck, she said that the spirits were getting stronger. Rather than getting in the truck, she dropped the tailgate, sat on the back, and apparently had several conversations with the spirits. I was a little bored by now, so I decided to walk across the street and get a cup of coffee. When I got back, she was wrapping up her visitations, and I took her home.

I don’t recall asking her out again, but this restaurant became my litmus test for future dates. Thankfully, when I took the future Mrs. Gone here early on in our courtship, she didn’t mention anyone trying to reach out to her from the beyond, and it's become one of our favorite places.