Soaking Up the Vibes
“Like a sponge” is the consensus view of the big new floating dance floor at Memories, which reopened last month with a mission to please Orange County’s West Coast swing, hustle and Latin dancers.
Manager John Crist, a first-time restaurateur--and, not coincidently, a swing dancer--revived the two-story establishment, which closed in May after serving, under different management, as a mainstream eatery heavy on oldies rock ‘n’ roll. Before that, the place offered adult entertainment under the name Mr. J’s, and before that, it served steak and such as Bessie Walls.
Yanking the nails themselves, Crist and his brother Kevin ripped up the old dance floor, tore out a small stage that obstructed it and installed an unobstructed, 1,400-square-foot floor with an inch of foam beneath it.
They moved the deejay booth downstairs to facilitate requests and brought in some of the area’s best instructor-deejays for classes followed by open dancing.
Mondays are hustle with Cesar Ricaurte, Wednesdays are salsa with Salomon Rivera, and Thursdays and Sundays are West Coast swing with Patricia Straight and Jerry Dawson, respectively.
Most everybody here knows the other patrons, at least by sight, which is common anywhere the county’s closely knit social dance clutch roves. Still, newcomers needn’t cringe: These people are quite friendly, almost always happy to dance with a new face. Students never need bring their own partners to lessons.
The renovated venue looks more like a ballroom school than a restaurant-nightclub. Burgundy booths still circle the floor, but beige walls bear no posters, pictures or beer signs.
The upstairs dining room hasn’t and won’t change. It still looks like a Colonial steakhouse, and the beveled glass partition etched with Bessie Walls’ name still stands. Walls built the building in 1929 and lived in it until she was about 70, Crist said, before it was converted into a parade of restaurants.
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That’s the big question here. Can Crist, who previously worked in advertising sales for The Times Orange County, succeed where others haven’t? He has already taken a big risk by catering to serious dancers, notorious for preferring water to alcohol.
His strategy is to “educate” his patrons, who typically eat in and then go out to dance, to make a whole night of it, he said. He has hired Sergio Copoccia, billed as a former chef at Matteo’s in Beverly Hills and Frank Sinatra’s onetime personal chef.
The Italian cuisine coming out of the kitchen is getting good reviews. The prices aren’t cheap, but there’s a special every night. Drink prices are reasonable: House wine goes for $4 per glass, bottled beer costs $2.50, drafts go for $2, and soft drinks and bottled water run $1.50.
Folks may eat downstairs to watch the dancing, or in the upstairs room, which is reason alone for a visit. Below is Santa Ana River Lakes, and you’ll see cars streaming along the Riverside Freeway too. But block that out and focus on the reflected lights sparkling atop the water.
BE THERE
Memories, 1074 N. Tustin Ave., Anaheim; (714) 630-9233. Lessons begin at 7 p.m. on Monday and Wednesday, at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. Open dancing at 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, 9 p.m. every other night except Sunday. Sunday lessons from 1-5 p.m., followed by open dancing. Cover: $5, waived if dining.