Is it a sign of the times?
The odd sign on the front of Mount Pleasant Vintage & Provisions declaring the site isn't home to a cult has gone missing.
Assistant General Manager Ari James says the well-known sign, which had become a sort of landmark in its own right, went missing Tuesday, Jan. 16 during dinner service.
"Our sign has gone, we miss it dearly and we'd love to get it back," James tells V.I.A.
While it was a very official-looking sign, it is—or was—part of the decor of the restaurant. It also really brought the site together, explaining the history of the building the restaurant now occupies.
The large letters declared that "This is Not A Cult" and cited a (made-up) provincial legal code.
In small print, the sign actually provided some context to the restaurant's home:
The heritage home is the 1901-built Coulter House, which has had many occupants over the decades, chiefly operating as the "6th Avenue Grocery" into the late 1970s. As the Mount Pleasant Vintage sign puts it, the property was "cursed" in 1978 "when the last continually-run business shuttered" there, noting that the house-turned-grocer earned the devilish nickname "666" being as the building (then located at 66 W 6th, now moved to 67 W 6th) closed at "age 66."
But now, the spot upon which the sign was hung sits empty.
James says the theft hasn't been reported to the police as they're hoping public pressure will help whoever took it feel compelled to bring the sign back.
"We're ready to pound the pavement and put up some posters," he says. "We imagine someone locally took it, so maybe we could get them a little scared at least."
He adds that the Mount Pleasant Vintage & Provisions staff are hurt by the loss of the sign, as it was a big part of what gave the restaurant its quirky character.
"It's been with us since we opened up so there's sentimental value to it, so we'd much rather get this one back," James says.
Whether the sign was taken by a local history buff, a cult looking for a rather ham-fisted disguise, or someone else remains to be seen. James thinks it's likely been put on someone's wall as decor akin to a stolen street sign.
"A lot of us didn't think about how much we like that sign until it was gone," he says of the staff. "A lot of us feel like our identity has been taken along with it. It became a landmark on its own."
"It represented us for sure."
Whoever has taken the beloved restaurant sign can return it to 67 West 6th Ave.
With files from Lindsay William-Ross
