“Meet me at the Arches” was a familiar phrase when the main route from Los Angeles to San Diego was PCH. For travelers halfway home, a gas station and café called The Arches, for its distinctive architecture, became a haven at which to rest and refresh.
At what is now the corner of Coast Highway and Newport Boulevard, it was a popular hangout for celebrities including Gary Cooper, Tyrone Power, Frank Sinatra, Humphrey Bogart, John Wayne, Howard Hughes, and others; Shirley Temple dined there in 1936 after cutting the ribbon at the dedication ceremony for Newport Harbor.
The gas station went away but Dan Marcheano, who bought the business in 1982, turned it over the next quarter century into a popular steak house with fine food, great service and old-school ambiance.
Marcheano closed the restaurant in 2007; a reboot three years on Westcliff Drive never gained traction and it was gone for good.
I met him several times but lost track after it closed. Word now comes from Business Journal Editor at Large Rick Reiff that Marcheano, a good friend of late Executive Dining columnist Fifi Chao, has died. An online bio gives a date of Oct. 24.
His community involvement included many local charities and organizations, including his beloved U.S. Marines. He supported veterans and families with fundraisers and direct gifts, and hosted an annual event on the birthday of the USMC, Nov. 10.
A memorial for him was held at Sabatino’s restaurant, fittingly, on Sunday, Nov. 10.
