A couple of weeks back, I received an email from a reader in Hawaii named Ken.  He was inquiring about a specific location from a Hallmark movie called In My Dreams.  He had been searching for Russo’s Italiano restaurant from the movie, without any luck.  The title didn’t ring any bells, but as you can guess, I was intrigued.  After checking the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries website, I recognized a couple of locations from the movie stills then looked at the storyline.

From Hallmark:

“Natalie (Katharine McPhee) and Nick (Mike Vogel) are both deep-down lonely…and frustrated. Nick’s mom (JoBeth Williams) is constantly trying to fix him up with candidate girlfriends. Natalie’s best friend is forever offering dating advice. But, neither Natalie nor Nick has found the right mate.

Then they both happen to be at the Hayward Fountain on the same day at the same time. Tradition has it that if you throw a coin in the fountain you’ll dream about your true love for seven nights. You have just seven nights to turn dreams into reality. Natalie and Nick separately throw coins in the fountain and the coins land on top of each other. When they’re not dreaming their dreams of romance, Nick and Natalie have to deal with frustrating day jobs. Nick’s career as an architect is going nowhere; Natalie’s trying desperately to breathe life into the dying-on-the-vine Italian restaurant she’s inherited. But the clock’s ticking. Seven nights–and only seven nights–to turn dreams into reality. Can they make magic come true?”

Now, I’m guessing that some of you may have found my blog after doing an online search for a Hallmark film location and boom, within seconds, you found my website…and the location you were looking for.  But how does the information get out there in the first place?  Well, I have to actually find the location first, so that you can find it through an online search.  So, I thought it might be of interest to walk you through what is entailed with looking for a location and this search seemed like a prime example. It had all the elements of a good mystery; intrigue from the start, twists & turns from random clues, frustration after hours spent on Google Street View, and the thrill of victory when I literally shouted the words, “I found it!”   Although I do not always find every location I am searching for, I told Ken from the start that I was very confident we would find his restaurant.   And that is exactly what I did, so Ken…..this ones for you!   Let’s look at how it all happened.

After checking the Hallmark website for movie info, the first thing I did was look at IMDB to see if there was any location info posted.  (only Vancouver was listed.  FYI: Vancouver is GINORMOUS!)  Next, I needed to find out where I could watch the film.  I got lucky when I saw that it is currently showing on Hallmark Now.  I immediately noticed there were a lot of scenes shot at Deer Lake Park, which I wrote about here.  A large fountain was brought in for filming and the scenes were very impressive.  The park looks pretty sweet in this film!  I spotted Burnaby Village, which I’ve been to and will feature later this year.  And there were a few scenes shot downtown in the Gastown area, which I easily recognized.  I captured several screen shots throughout the movie to assist me with the search.

As for as the whereabouts of the restaurant, I was able to rule out Gastown right away based on the road, sidewalk, and street lights.  I spent a lot of time analyzing the screen shots, zooming in on them, and trying to get a feel for the area.  The signs of neighboring businesses were too far away and blurred out at that!

I remember joking around the first day that this was already a “two magnifying glass” search…LOL.   Unfortunately, there just wasn’t much to go on but I was able to make out a “C” and an “O” on a black street sign.  However, I wasn’t sure if this was the actual sign or an altered one.

I went with my gut that it was the real McCoy and began looking for streets that began with “Co”.   After several hours, I set it aside.  I had to…my eyes hurt!  Have I mentioned how LARGE Vancouver is???

When I picked up the search again a couple days later, I already knew I was ALL IN!  It was as if this thing literally sucked me in and I knew that given time, I would find Russo’s, although it could take a while due to lack of info.  I imagined myself driving around Vancouver, looking for this particular building each time I was up in the area, like I would just happen upon it in my travels….as if!  (I crack myself up sometimes!) It is laughable because Vancouver and the surrounding areas are mega-huge and the chances of me randomly driving past are slim to none and oh, by the way…slim just left town.

Because there wasn’t much to go on and I was not having any luck, I decided to broaden the circle.  After perusing the IMDB Cast & Crew page, I reached out, via social media, to three of the supporting actors, and to the LM by email.  And while I waited to hear something back, I continued my search up and down streets all over Vancouver, Maple Ridge, New West, Burnaby, Langley, and Pitt Meadows.  For hours. Yes, hours.  I know what you’re thinking but there is something about the thrill of the hunt.  As frustrating as it can be, it is equally as exciting because I never know when I’m going to find my needle in a haystack.

The first person I heard back from could not remember anything about the location and was not familiar with Vancouver to begin with.  Stee-rike one.  Next, I heard back from non other than Erica Carroll, who plays dress shop owner Dottie on WCTH.  Erica was so friendly and forthcoming and was able to give me the address of the restaurant!  My heart was racing as I typed the address into google and pulled it up on the map.  And when the property came into view, the place was totally boarded up.

I toggled the view to show what it looked like back in 2012, as close to when filming took place.

I was totally and thoroughly confused!  First, there were two Italian restaurants right next to each other.  (say what?)  In the movie, Russo’s had a bright red door with curved glass.

And as I was staring at this building, one of the restaurants also had nearly identical bright red doors with curved glass.  (what the heck???)

But there was no way this building was the restaurant I was looking for.  Aside from a red door, nothing matched up at all so I did some serious digging online.  Through photos of the restaurant, I was able to establish that the now shuttered Salvatore’s La Spaghetteria is where the interior scenes of Russo’s were filmed.  Of course, this solved one part of the mystery, but I couldn’t help but wonder.   Where was Russo’s exterior hiding?

As I was pondering that question, I heard back from Chiara Zanni, who could not have been sweeter!  She played Lori Beth in this movie, and we’ve scene her in other Hallmark movies as well.  Chiara clearly remembered an evening shoot in Gastown on Cordova Street.  And there it was….a street with “Co”.  But by now, I had already been up and down Cordova numerous times and wasn’t any closer to finding the place.  She thought maybe the corner of Cordova and Abbott but after studying the area, I could tell this was not Russo’s.  It was then that I remembered something important.  Neither Chiara or Erica had any scenes outside the restaurant, only inside.  So they wouldn’t know where it was because they hadn’t ever been there!  And since it had been five years since filming took place, they wouldn’t remember the particulars of the shoot.  They are both busy actors and constantly changing sets.  Chiara did shoot a couple scenes in Gastown and I am impressed that she remembered Cordova!

So back to Google Street View I went.  I was talking to my husband about all of this.  As I’ve mentioned before, he is not “into” film locations but he gets that this is my hobby and is in full support of my blog, and anything else that makes me happy.  I showed him my latest screen shots with all the identifiers marked.

He suggested I check Hastings Street, near The Red Wagon, a place we’ve been to from Guy’s Diners, Drive-in’s, and Dives. (side note: Best.  Pancakes.  Ever.)  As I pulled up the map on Google and looked at areas surrounding Hastings, I noticed a street named Commercial…”Co”… and decided to check it out.  Within minutes, I was yelling, “I found it…I found it!!!”  (ah, the sweet smell of victory!)  Even hubs came into my office to see what it looked like on Google Street View!

In real life, Russo’s Italiano is actually Five Elements Café.  It is located at 1046 Commercial Drive in Vancouver, BC.  When filming took place back in 2013, the building housed Tony’s Deli.   As you can see in the photos, the place looks very much like it did on screen.  Production built an outdoor area and entrance off the side of the building for filming, including the red door.   You will also notice that Natalie’s apartment looks exactly the same as it did when the movie was shot, right down to the green paint and street address.  And it’s details like this that excite me every single time!

After studying those screen shots and memorizing every detail, it was SO cool to see the tree, parking meter, street lights & signals, signage, and the gorgeous apartment building above the restaurant.   Just down the street is Little Italy, which I would love to visit!  There are many beautiful old buildings in the neighborhood and it would be great to take some time and walk around one afternoon.  The day I visited, parking was an issue for me, and I was forced to move my car after taking just a handful of photos.   I’d love to go back and take it all in because it was so awesome to actually be there after this whirlwind search!

I cannot tell you how many hours I put in on this one location, plus all the time Ken put in.  It’s just a lot, but all part of the journey.  Of course sometimes, I will find a place during a commercial break….not kidding!  It is always different.  I do love the challenge and always try to find locations on my own but every now and then, I have to reach out to my friends at What’s Filming or consult IMDB.  And anytime I do, I always disclose this in my story.  So when you read about a location, it is because I have actually taken the time to find it myself, unless otherwise noted.   And while this is not the first time I have ever reached out to an actor, it IS the first time I have EVER received a response back…..and 3 for 3, no less!!!  I never did hear back from the LM.

To see a remarkable photo of this building from 1954, check out the Heritage Vancouver website here.  I cannot believe it looks almost the same!!!

My sincere thanks to Erica Carroll for the address you provided and to Chiara Zanni for the info you remembered.  Thank you both for your willingness to help a girl out.  And to Ken, thanks for your email inquiring about this location.  It’s been a fun ride!  Aloha!

Wanna buy the catchy song played in the movie?  By artist Amy Stroup, it is called “Just You”.   The movie is currently available to watch for subscribers of Hallmark Now, or you can buy the DVD below.   Please consider making your purchase through the links below, which helps to support this website.  Thanks!

Thank you for joining me on “the great search”, and for your support every week.  It means a lot to me!  If you are a fan of WCTH, don’t miss this Sunday’s season finale.  Check local listing for times.  I will be back next week with an all new Hallmark location.  Thank you!

 

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