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Haunted Restaurant Experiences...


Memo

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I was speaking to a friend on the weekend - someone who is hyper-sensitive to the paranormal. (He's had more than a few hair-raising ghost experiences.) He was staying at Poet's Cove resort, on South Pender Island last year. Following dinner, he was on his way to the washrooms, but stopped en route to look at a large painting which caught his eye in the hallway. As he was admiring the artwork, he literally felt a hand reach behind and under his collar - jerking him back with a sudden strong tug! Noone was there, of course - and the hair on his neck went straight up! He's heard since that an electrician has refused to go work in the basement at the building because of an intense creepy experience. (I've learned that Poet's Cove was built over an ancient Native burial site.)

Camille's in Victoria is known to be haunted by a ghost - detected by the smell of cigar smoke - who frequents one section of the restaurant. According to accounts from serving staff, he is discriminating in who he'll make his presence felt to. Sometimes he'll tip a wine glass.

I'm curious about any first (or second)-hand ghost stories from the food-front. Any haunted restaurant experiences you'd like to share?

Memo :cool:

Ríate y el mundo ríe contigo. Ronques y duermes solito.

Laugh, and the world laughs with you. Snore, and you sleep alone.

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There was a bed and breakfast place we went to near Comox when visiting the Trumpeter Swan Festival. I would never go back there, because I had a very vivid nightmare of a very angry woman, (maybe a nurse?) standing over my bed. When I woke up a beautiful trumpeter flew past my window, and made me feel fine again. I asked the owners if anyone else had had any experiences like mine, but she said most people feel the house has a very calm energy.

I went to summer arts camp at Fort San in the Qu' Apelle Valley in Saskatchewan and an enterprising young writer put a note in my bedroom saying that the halls were haunted by "Nurse Jane". I laughted about it, and then of course I didn't sleep all night, and the screeching of bats didn't help the matter. Many people have succumbed to tuberculosis there, but I always felt it was a peaceful place. The food they served on the other had, was horrifying. We used to have "red meals", and "green meals". AHHHH!

Saskatchewan is full of ghosts. In a funny way, I miss them here.

And it's okay if you don't believe in them, because then they don't believe in you either. :wink:

"I used to be Snow White, but I drifted."

--Mae West

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For years I worked at a seafood restaurant called Chandler's (the one with the whale mural), in Victoria. The 5 story brick building is circa 1886, and it shows. There are places in the outside wall where you can actually remove a couple bricks, and put them back in. Old.

Two of the floors are underground, one of them below the seawall. You can see large archways, and old outlines of doors, where old gates were bricked over. You don't have to look too far on that block for evidence of old, large doorways leading under the water.

This old chinese dishwasher, who left just as I started, complained of noises, and odd feelings whenever he was down in that storage area, and painted large, chinese symbols over all of these old doorways. There was, of course, the usual stories of lights being turned on, messes being made etc. that you get in old buildings, especially places where a good story might entertain a guest.

I also worked for years in Market Square (Hi Andrew!), where ghost stories abound. I just remember being able to get on the roof to "watch the fireworks" because I was in with the security guy. :cool:

One spring when I was there, the city ripped up lower Johnson for some major work, and discovered tunnels heading across the street, heading towards the Empress and Legislature, 10+ feet below the street, that weren't on any engineering map they had. This is no BS, these guys came in to the restaurant three times a day for 5 weeks. I saw this with my own eyes ....

-- Matt.

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The site of Bravo's restaurant on Wharf Street (next to the Victoria Regent Hotel) has a bad-karma history. I'm not sure who is operating out of the space now? Its first owner, Antonio (correct me if I'm wrong, but it was named after him) committed suicide by hanging himself from the stairway railing. You can still see the pressure gauging on the railing where the rope was knotted. Since then, kitchen staff have felt a bad vibe (especially at locking-up time). I'd conduct a limpia/transition/exorcism ritual before thinking of opening in that space.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! :shock:

Memo

Ríate y el mundo ríe contigo. Ronques y duermes solito.

Laugh, and the world laughs with you. Snore, and you sleep alone.

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I was speaking to a friend on the weekend - someone who is hyper-sensitive to the paranormal. (He's had more than a few hair-raising ghost experiences.) He was staying at Poet's Cove resort, on South Pender Island last year.  Following dinner, he was on his way to the washrooms, but stopped en route to look at a large painting which caught his eye in the hallway. As he was admiring the artwork, he literally felt a hand reach behind and under his collar - jerking him back with a sudden strong tug! Noone was there, of course - and the hair on his neck went straight up! He's heard since that an electrician has refused to go work in the basement at the building because of an intense creepy experience. (I've learned that Poet's Cove was built over an ancient Native burial site.)

I am sooooooooo glad we decided not to spend our honeymoon night there... that was the original plan! Please tell me that the Hotel Eldorado is not haunted!! Not that I believe in that sort of thing... :cool:

"Many people believe the names of In 'n Out and Steak 'n Shake perfectly describe the contrast in bedroom techniques between the coast and the heartland." ~Roger Ebert

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(QUOTE=Jeffy Boy @ May 24 2006, 11:50 PM)

"I've been haunted ever since I saw this."

More a possession than a haunting. :cool:

Memo

Edited by Memo (log)

Ríate y el mundo ríe contigo. Ronques y duermes solito.

Laugh, and the world laughs with you. Snore, and you sleep alone.

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According to tripadvisor.com the 10 most haunted places in Canada include the the Old Spaghetti Factory in Gastown and a couple of hotels (with restaurants) - Banff Springs Hotel and The Fort Garry in Winnipeg. Who knows who/what may be joining you for brunch.

Or there's this CBC story dating back to 1979 about the old Masonic Temple that was turned into Mother Tucker's (restaurant). This one was a fun ghost who seemed to party it up when everybody was gone for the night. (it's a kick to watch the old tv footage) - I've never seen the ghost there.

My mother claims that our previous location was haunted. Every once in a while, one of our walk-in freezers would go a little crazy. It would sound like someone was knocking on the door and banging the walls trying to get out. On a couple of occasions the door just flew open on it's own. There were plenty of times when strange noises could be heard. Things dropping in the kitchen or basement when nobody was around. She thinks it was a lady who had owned our building and worked as a caterer decades earlier.

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