Halloween makeover at The Garlic Tree

It;s Halloween weekend and around the Restaurant Story community there are interiors ravaged by thick spider webs and exteriors infested with rotting pumpkins. My diner, The Garlic Tree, is no different. However there's more to worry about at my place than just a few crumbling graves...

Usually these tours of my place start in the foyer and work their way around serenely, but on this occasion we have been asked by the staff to congregate in the drawing room.

Drawing room at The Garlic Tree

The plan was for Action Chef Lee and Manager Phoebe to spend a quality evening hosting a dinner party with a murder mystery theme. The decor suggests a fancy night was in the works, with the Steampunk Couch, Steampunk Globe and Bronze Telescope all oozing class.

The Dinner Party itself is in full swing, with the food and dinner table chat being enjoyed by the guests. But the hosts themselves are arched over a Candle End Table. Lee and Phoebe are studying the little evidence at hand. Evidence of the what I hear you ask?! Well, there's been a robbery!

Detective Phoebe has been hired to assist after the Floor Safe was forced open and looted. She's set up some Caution Tape Dividers to prevent anyone stomping over the crime scene which includes a number of Treasure Tiles scattered on the floor. It appears the culprit hasn't been able to hold on to much of the gold in their rush to make a getaway.

I reckon we should try and help the Detective with her investigation. Let's start with the neighbouring fortune teller.

Psychic Reader's corner at The Garlic Tree

The Psychic Reader has set up her corner along the Stepping Stone path in an opening of The Woods. She claims to have supernatural powers, so could it be that she worked some magic to break into the safe? It's a sound theory, but she looks to be preoccupied with her swirling crystal ball.

Indeed she's got a customer right now, with Bella Beekeeper (great Halloween costume!) hoping to get a glimpse into her future. I'm starting to think we can rule out this psychic, and then she actually helps the cause:

'I'm seeing something, yes something sinister!' she proclaims in an unnaturally high pitch, 'the beast you are looking for is holding on to something!'

It's a relatively vague statement, but then again she is a psychic. Upon hearing this new nugget of information, I suggest that we mosy on over to the foyer.

Foyer at The Garlic Tree

The ambience is far from pleasant in here, with a Rainy Deck and Old Saloon walls giving a real ramshackle sense. Nevertheless this is the entry point to The Garlic Tree, and therefore it should be possible for customers to take a seat and wait for a table. The Coffin Couch couldn't be less inviting, but how about a volume from the Coffin Bookshelf to pass the time? The Headless Horseman and Spinning Wheel (touch the spindle, touch it I say!) add further creepiness to the bots' wait, and they won't be feeling any more relaxed after a slimy green drink from the Patio Drink Cart.

And if all this wasn't enough, the bloke in charge of the Brown Host Stand is none other than the Grim Reaper himself. Wielding his menacing scythe and a tiny lantern, this cloaked figure fits the Psychic Reader's proclamation. But then again, he looks too engrossed with the paperwork in front of him to have committed a robbery. Remember that Mr Reaper is well trained in perusing lists of persons set for the chop in his day job, so he should be fully focused on the evening's bookings.

And so we appear to have reached a dead end (pun very much intended). Let's get out into the main eating section of The Garlic Tree and regroup.

Main section at The Garlic Tree

Here there has been some real neglect when it comes to cleaning. Be it the Spider Stone flooring, Haunted Tables or Spiderweb Chairs, there seem to be webs spreading all over. And that only serves to heighten the consternation when looking at the centrepiece of this area. Lit by glowing Skeleton Lamps, the Haunted Clock Tower is as eerie as they come. Even the bats dare not get too close, instead opting to quiver above the disintegrating structure. Fortunately there are Wells of Spirits have been installed to keep the punters from getting too close, but it can't be a nice place to dine.

Despite the disturbing surroundings, the Violinist refuses to take any leave, instead opting to continue plucking her strings. She's got the Spooky Piano as an accompaniment - that's sure to get the Zombie Waiter jigging.

And in that moment a brainwave - the Zombie Waiter was created by the twisted folks in the laboratory. They're definitely the evil types that would steal a stash of gold, if only to invest in further warped experiments. So we're headed to the lab next as the investigation intensifies.

Laboratory at The Garlic Tree

As expected the lab is a hive of activity, with the Mad Chemist conducting a complex Lab Experiment with his trusty Lab Assistant. Unfortunately we've caught the Mad Scientist in a sticky situation, with a leaking flask leaving behind a trail of Slime Splatter as he struts around the room. But notice that they're all clutching something - the psychic's words are ringing in my ears.

Overall the set-up is highly advanced, with Lab Counters containing all the dials and gauges needed to monitor the ongoing activities, while the Lab Counters X and Y are stacked with flasks and beakers containing abnormally coloured liquids.

 Want to visit The Garlic Tree?

 Invite the Storm8 ID 'lorettasapron' and visit the wall

But looking closer with Detective Phoebe's magnifying glass, is this really the domain of career criminals? For a start they've got sufficient etiquette to use a Lab Coat Hanger. But more pertinently, the Lounge Lizard has something to say:

'This lot hic have been here hic the whole hic day. They're trying to hic make me the perfect martini since those folk hic next door were useless hic hic hic.'

Well there you have it - the drunk lizard has offered up an alibi on behalf of the scientists, so it must be true. And I'm intrigued by his comment about the near neighbours. Is it possible that they've been too preoccupied with a burglary to brew fine drinks? Let's take a look.

Kitchen at The Garlic Tree

Once again things are busy, this time in the kitchen. Some of the regular staff at my restaurant are still working hard, but they've been somewhat overrun by a team of witches. This is the Witch's Kitchen now, and they're making their mark. A Wicked Floor has been laid, while a stand of Witch's Hats and a Spooky Broom have been introduced as the witches make themselves at home.

At a glance you may view this group of pointed hatters as strong suspects, but I'm afraid I've found a couple of problems. First of all, witches don't do martinis. They do whisky (I'm trying to make a connection to Macbeth, the Scottish play here!) and so it's understandable that the Lounge Lizard couldn't get a good martini from them - nothing to do with the witches being busy with a burglary.

The second issue is the presence of My Fair Gran-Gran. She was very concerned about allowing the witches to utilise her kitchen, so swore to herself to keep a close eye on them. That she has done, and given that Gran-Gran is a women of morals, there is absolutely no way that she would cover up the witches' tracks.

So that means we've ruled out another area's occupants. Some serious head scratching is required here, so I think we should go and get some fresh air.

Graveyard at The Garlic Tree

The graveyard of Tombstone Tables may not be the most peaceful of places to mull things over, but it's all we've got. Beyond the Jack-o'-lanterns is a larger grave flanked by Lion Statues and overlooking this is a Fall Owl in a tree. The owl is looking rather alarmed up on her perch and no wonder! There's a Vampire Waiter clutching a tray of drinks at this larger grave!

This is highly suspect and my gut instinct is that this must be related to the robbery in some capacity. I turn to interrogate the wise owl for more details on what she's seen, only to realise that it's not the vampire she's staring intensely at - it's the Train Conductor stationed at the other end of the graveyard!

The vampire is still a distressing sight, but I guess that's the case with any vampire. Let's leave him to share his drinks with whatever company he finds and push on with our investigation by approaching the conductor.

The Train Conductor spotting the culprit!

He's blowing his whistle as loud as he possibly can, and in a moment the entire mystery unravels. Because following his line of sight, we can see a ghost on the outskirts of the forest. The Trick or Treat Ghost matches the Psychic Reader's premonition that the culprit would be clutching something - its holding a small jack-o-lantern shaped bucket, presumably stuffed full of gold.

And since the bucket is so small, the gold has been pouring out. Treasure Tiles can be seen immediately behind the ghost, and can be traced back through the forest of Fallen Trees to the Haunted House in the clearing.

Forest at The Garlic Tree

A Treasure Tile at the side of the house indicates that the ghost hurdled both the Wall Hedge and a Spider Table to make a swift exit from the scene of the crime.

For a while it looked like he was going to get away with it, but that meddling conductor has a knack for catching wrongdoers. The ghost even shakes its left fist in frustration at being rumbled just as it thought it was going to get away.

And so the mystery of Lee and Phoebe's lost gold is solved. For those of us hunting for answers it was a stressful and time consuming ordeal, but at least one group of people were glad for the drama. The Trick-or-Treaters had just emerged from the Haunted House having failed to find a single ghoul which, as you'd expect, was very disappointing. So imagine their delight when a ghost flashed past in a bid to make off with the drawing room loot! They've had a Halloween they'll never forget!

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I really had no idea what I was going to do for Halloween this year when I set out to revamp my restaurant a couple of weeks back. All I knew was that I absolutely had to buy the returning Haunted Clock Tower and Mad Scientist. I've reluctantly passed on both on multiple occasions in the past, so felt that now was the time to procure them.

It was only after buying the clock tower that I realised I didn't have any thoughts on how to use it, But looking back at the sinister decor I tend to implement in my main section for Halloween I knew it would look great in there, even if it is indoors.

As for the story I've just splurged, it was spontaneous. I quite liked the classic idea of having a dinner party where a crime has been committed, and the Floor Safe was the ideal decoration for making that happen.

 Recent posts from The Garlic Tree

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 16/08/16 Olympics 2016
 13/02/16 Valentine's Day 2016
 25/01/16 Winter 2016
 25/12/15 Christmas 2015

But the ghostly culprit could only be put in place thanks to a decent box opening. After having forked out for other Halloween content I grudgingly decided not to go mad with the crate sales, and instead just legislated for two openings. My fourth prize Trick or Treat Ghost and third prize Coffin Couch from the Spooky Chest were certainly not the results I had hoped for, but I've made do. I know a lot of players have cleaned themselves out getting hold of some truly brilliant items, but I'm attempting to play the long game - the possibility of Black Friday and Christmas sales need to be considered.

I hope you enjoyed my unconventional tour! You may wonder why I've chosen to release this post on the 29th rather than waiting until Halloween itself on Monday, but there's a good reason. On Halloween I'll be presenting to you the latest showcase - five fine neighbours will be showing off their outstanding creations, and rest assured, this is one you don't want to miss!