Sharp Objects – IAMNOTASTALKER

I’m not sure what it is about old school diners, but I sure have an affinity for them. My inclination maybe stems from memories of childhood road trips or weekend mornings spent at greasy spoons with my parents during my early years or my nostalgic nature in general. Whatever the cause, if I see a retro café onscreen, chances are I’m going to want to locate it. Such was the case with Gritty’s Coffee Shop, the supposed Wind Gap, Missouri eatery Detective Richard Willis (Chris Messina) frequented in Sharp Objects, the 2018 HBO miniseries based on the Gillian Flynn novel of the same name. Thankfully, the restaurant was a snap to find.

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While set in the Show-Me State, as I mentioned in this post Sharp Objects was largely filmed in Southern California. A Google search for “Gritty’s Coffee Shop” and “Los Angeles” led nowhere, though. Thankfully, I happened to spot an address number of “12912” posted outside of the restaurant while watching the sixth episode, titled “Cherry,” which made my search much more fruitful. As soon as I inputted “Coffee Shop,” “Los Angeles,” and “12912,” a slew of entries for an eatery named Olympic Coffee Shop located at 12912 San Fernando Road in Sylmar was kicked back.

One look at images of the place online told me it was the right spot and I promptly added it to my To-Stalk List.

Then, when I saw the eatery pop up in an episode of Bosch (Season 2’s “Gone”), which the Grim Cheaper and I were binging at the time, that very same week, I knew I had to get out there stat!

Olympic Coffee Shop was originally established way back in 1951 as James’ Drive-In.

It subsequently became Jim Bill’s Restaurant in 1957, then Demetri’s Coffee Shop in 1971, and finally Olympic Coffee Shop in 1984.

Other than its past names, I could not find much information about the place’s history online, which is surprising considering its longevity.

Unfortunately, the GC and I were short on time when we showed up to stalk Olympic Coffee Shop, so we could not dine on the premises. As fate would have it, though, the super-friendly owner happened to see us taking photos outside and welcomed us in for a quick chat and to snap all the pictures I wanted.

He also filled us in on the site’s extensive film resume.

According to him, the place is used in productions almost weekly, which, due to its perfectly preserved 1950s aesthetic, is not at all surprising.

What is surprising is that I had never heard of the place until Sharp Objects!

Olympic Coffee Shop appeared in three episodes of the miniseries. Along with the aforementioned “Cherry,” it also popped up in the episodes “Fix” and “Falling.”

The restaurant’s film history dates back much, much farther, though.

In 1978, it masked as Sybil’s in the comedy Every Which Way But Loose, but both the exterior . . .

. . . and interior looked quite a bit different at the time.

Lincoln Hawk (Sylvester Stallone) challenged his son, Michael Cutler (David Mendenhall), to arm wrestle some local thugs at the restaurant, when it was still operating as Demetri’s, in 1987’s Over the Top.

In the 2000 film Memento, Teddy (Joe Pantoliano) and Leonard (Guy Pearce) discuss the faultiness of memories at Olympic Coffee Shop.

Luke Campbell (Dan Byrd) and Sylar (Zachary Quinto) narrowly escape from government agents at the eatery in the Season 3 episode of Heroes titled “Building 26,” which aired in 2009.

Train’s Patrick Monahan falls in love with a waitress named Kate (played by Anna Camp) at Olympic Coffee Shop in the group’s 2010 “Marry Me” music video, which you can watch here.

That same year, the restaurant was the site of a massive shootout in the Season 2 episode of NCIS: Los Angeles titled “Bounty.”

Donna (Catherine Keener) and Patrick (James Le Gros) run into Kathleen (Mikey Madison) at Olympic Coffee Shop at the end of the 2018 drama Nostalgia.

That same year, Johnny ‘Coco’ Cruz (Richard Cabral) has a rather terse reunion with his mom and sister at the café in the Season 1 episode of Mayans M.C. titled “Murciélago/Zotz.”

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: Olympic Coffee Shop, from Sharp Objects, is located at 12192 San Fernando Road in Sylmar. The café is open daily from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m.

I am a very black and white person. Opinions typically come to me immediately and tend to swing towards either loving or hating something. I don’t deal much in grey. For some reason, though, I cannot decide if I like Sharp Objects. I thoroughly enjoyed the Gillian Flynn novel on which the new HBO series is based (it is my favorite out of all of her books) and could not have been more excited to watch, especially when I heard it being referred to as “the next Big Little Lies.” But five episodes in and I’m still on the fence. The show’s acting is indisputably top-notch and its storyline gripping, but I also find it slow-moving, bleak, and all-around odd. I was thrilled to learn, though, that while set in the fictional town of Wind Gap, Missouri, filming largely took place in Southern California. I was also thrilled to recognize one spot that I stalked a few years ago, but never blogged about – Le Chene French Cuisine. The Grim Cheaper and I happened by the Santa Clarita eatery way back in March 2013 while doing some stalking nearby and I recalled its unique exterior from its many appearances in film location books and websites chronicling its cameo in 1971’s Duel. So we promptly pulled over to snap some pics. Though the place went right out of my mind and into my stalking backlog, as soon as it showed up on Sharp Objects, I knew I had to dedicate a post to it.

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Le Chene French Cuisine was originally established as the Oaks Garage gas station by mechanic William A. Dodrill and his wife, Rachel Swanson, in 1917. The initial structure that stood on the premises was not much more than a small wooden shack with an adjacent concession stand that offered cold sodas to passersby. You can check out a photo of what it looked like at the time here.

In 1923, the couple decided to broaden their budding enterprise by adding an eatery to the site. Boulders were brought in from Big Rock Creek in Palmdale to cover the new restaurant’s exterior. The unique façade earned the place the nickname “rock house,” as well as “Castle Oaks Garage and Café” thanks to its castle-like appearance.

During the 1940s, the business was acquired by Chester and Marie Lamar and became a hotbed of celebrity activity. Just a few of the well-knowns who popped in while filming in the area or passing by on their way to local attractions include Gregory Peck, Lee Marvin, Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Wallace Beery, William Boyd, Jane Wyman, Keenan Wynn, Mickey Cohan, and Clark Gable (who was not the best customer, reportedly).

Since the Lamars’ tenure ended in 1957, the property has been bought and sold several times. It was finally leased by Juan Alonso in 1980. The Spanish-born chef transformed the site into upscale French eatery Le Chene, which translates to “the oak.”

Despite the fact that it is located pretty much in the middle of nowhere, the restaurant quickly became a popular dining spot and Alonso purchased it in 1981. Years later, when the need to expand arose, he gutted the former garage and turned it into a banquet room. He has since enlarged the kitchen and main dining room, remodeled the bar, and added a large garden and a 6-acre vineyard. Today, the eatery boasts a whopping 8,900 square feet.

Le Chene popped up in the fourth episode of Sharp Objects, titled “Ripe,” as the supposed Wind Gap restaurant La Mere, where Camille Preaker (Amy Adams) meets with some of her mother’s friends including Jackie O’Neill (Elizabeth Perkins) and Annie B (Beth Broderick). Both the exterior . . .

. . . and interior of the site appear in the episode. Sadly, Le Chene was closed when we dropped by, so I did not get to see the inside, but you can check out some photos of it here.

In the television movie Duel, which has the distinction of being Steven Spielberg’s first foray into full-length film directing, Le Chene portrays Chuck’s Café, where David Mann (Dennis Weaver) crashes his car after being chased by a menacing truck driver (played by Carey Loftin).

After the collision, David ventures into the restaurant (which looked much different at the time the flick was lensed in 1971) to clean himself up and soon discovers that the truck driver has followed him inside to terrorize him further.

Though an old LoopNet listing for the property suggests that additional filming has taken place the premises, I have been unable to dig up any other productions the place has appeared in.

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: Le Chene French Cuisine, aka La Mere from Sharp Objects, is located at 12625 Sierra Highway in Santa Clarita. You can visit the restaurant’s official website here. The eatery is only open for dinner most days (on Sunday, brunch is served), so plan accordingly.

Tag: Sharp Objects

Olympic Coffee Shop from “Sharp Objects”

Le Chene French Cuisine from “Sharp Objects”