THE GOOD OLD DAYS:Bar’s 40 years of quiet success

There is a village in England said to be haunted still by a religious woman who died after a family member cut off her head with a sword, as the tale goes. The woman, who was later called the Quiet Woman and has since helped pilgrims find her shrine, reportedly carried her head from the spot she was decapitated to the altar of a local church, spawning the logo for many pubs to come later.

In the village of Halstock in Dorset, England, the Quiet Woman House is said to be the spot where she was killed.

The name hopped the pond 40 years ago and found its way to 3224 East Coast Highway in Corona del Mar. Judith’s tale is just one of the stories about how the Quiet Woman restaurant and bar in Corona del Mar got its name, but it’s the one owner Lynne Anthony Campbell is sticking with.

After a trip to Europe researching the name, Judith’s story is the one Lynne Campbell and her husband and business partner Sean Campbell found most relevant. Lynne Campbell said founder Eldridge French opened the bar after serving in World War II, recreating a pub he may have spent time in while overseas. But Lynne Campbell said French had told her once he wasn’t sure about her story, but failed to offer his own version.

This month and next the restaurant is celebrating its 40th anniversary with a series of live music events, dinners and specials. From 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. every Tuesday, the restaurant is offering wine and small plate pairings, and live bands will play for the later crowd. On Tuesday night, Long Beach-based band Dumb Luck played the stage. The restaurant’s house band will play on Halloween and on Nov. 7, a U2 tribute band will take over.

Since the Quiet Woman opened in 1965, it’s not only been a spot for dining, but it’s been on the radar as a popular hotspot for the late night crowd and live music. Lynne Campbell said although many chefs she’s met think of the bar as a necessary evil, the Quiet Woman staff welcomes the bar crowd.

“We grow our next generation of dinner customers,” she said.

The Campbells had frequented the restaurant before buying it in 1989, almost always ordering the restaurant’s signature rack of lamb. After they got married, they had two plans. Plan A was to sell off everything they owned, buy a sailboat and sail around the world. Plan B was to buy the restaurant where they had eaten the great rack of lamb. Although the restaurant was not listed for sale, they were tipped off that the previous owner, Mike Leach, would entertain reasonable offers.

When their soon-to-be partner could not come up with money in time, they had decided Plan B was no longer an option. As a courtesy, Lynne and Sean Campbell met with Leach to let him know they only had so much money to offer, and to their surprise, he agreed.

“It was serendipity,” she said.

They’ve held the restaurant the longest of its three owners.

The restaurant business has one of the highest failure rates of any industry, and the secret to the Quiet Woman’s success is a combination of staff, food and ambience. In recent years, the Campbells were able to buy out the laundromat next door to create a wine cellar but still keep the ambience relatively consistent since just about all of the customers are regulars.

“People find us because other people send them here,” Lynne Campbell said.

You get what you pay for at Quiet Woman, said Lynne Campbell, whether that be a more expensive lobster or a reasonably priced burger.

Daytime bartender Tevis Westgate is on his third tour stirring up cocktails and pouring wine and beer at the Quiet Woman. Since the 1970s, Westgate has served drinks at the bar and said the place fosters friendships.

“People come in as guests and become friends and people you see socially,” he said as he wiped off the bar.

The only major change since she started coming in and owning the joint is her customers’ palate, Lynne Campbell said. Before people ordered late night beers and burgers, she said, but now they’re getting beers and cabernet.

Since the bar has had its liquor license for so long, they are also a licensed retailer and sell wines by the bottle and case.

For more information about the restaurant, its lunch and dinner hours and its anniversary festivities, go to www.quietwoman.com.