Some years ago we (The Georis family) were walking along 5th street between San Carlos and Mission, when we suddenly heard a gentle “Hello”. The sound came from behind a screen door in a tiny house, the worse for wear, just past the Shell station. We approached the door (which never opened) and met Aunt Fairy Bird, a small black lady who had lived there for over 50 years.

Her house, situated as it was in downtown Carmel, was in truth, a shack, but it was coveted by nearby landowners. She lived there alone for many years. When she died at nearly 90, not long after our only encounter, her house and a lot were the object of spirited bidding in an estate sale. We learned that she had once been the cook for Charlie Chaplin, that her husband Tom had been a popular handyman in Carmel, and that she was a handy-lady for several Carmel Families.

While cleaning up her house, her executor found a great many Social Security checks that she had saved, hidden in the pages of newspapers and magazines. With him we helped open her safety deposit box and found a gold watch and two $2 bills. Aunt Fairy Bird’s place is now occupied by Casanova Restaurant. Approach it with some reverence.
 

-The Carmel Pine Cone

In 1977 we remodeled the home with influence from traditional Belgian architecture. The restaurant represents Carmel-by-the-Sea's quaint, old fashioned design.