Catalina’s Garden

Along the bay front you will find a lovely restaurant at 46 Avenida Menendez, once called Catalina’s Garden. The original home was built in 1750, and the family had nine children, one named Catalina.

In 1763 the British took possession of Florida, and those loyal to the Spanish Crown departed for Cuba. Catalina and her family left their home in St. Augustine with many others to make new home in Cuba. Catalina married while in Cuba, and when the Spanish returned to Florida in 1783, she petitioned to regain possession of her former home and won.

The home changed hands several times after that and in 1887 a huge fire swept the bay front burning many buildings, including the one Catalina had called home. The house was rebuilt shortly after the fire to resemble the original version.

Recently the home has been a series of restaurants, including Puerte Verde, Chart House and most recently Catalina’s Garden. The present owners say they have experienced two ghosts in their building.

One of the ghosts only appears downstairs. It is a man dressed in black with a black hat. He was first seen by a woman dining downstairs. She saw him standing near the fireplace staring at her. She got up to tell the management about it and they returned to find that he had vanished! Another woman saw him after she came down the stairs. She went into the main dining area and she saw the man in black standing next to the wine case. The next thing she knew, he had passed right through it.

A second ghost appears upstairs. A woman was using the upstairs restroom located near the server station. A waiter heard her screaming from inside the restroom, then saw her bolt from the restroom with her slacks down around her ankles. She ran out pulling them up as she was shouting: "I just had to get out, there was something in there, I didn’t see anything, I just felt some kind of presence! It felt like someone was staring at me!"

The wait staff has seen a figure of a woman in white on the second floor. She comes and goes, however no one seems to know who she is. Employees have seen a woman’s reflection in the mirror, only to turn and find no one there. It has been suggested – perhaps this is Catalina.

The building has experienced several strange events involving fire. It seems that on several occasions the fireplace had a fire roaring in it although no one lit a fire. There is also a hamper in the back that is used for napkins, towels, etc. One evening a member of the staff was passing by and noticed smoke coming from the hamper. He took out the towels and napkins and found nothing. Not one cigarette butt, nor a match, nothing that could have caused a fire or smoke.

The ghosts have been seen by a number of people, but no one is certain as to who they really are. They come and go, and maybe someday they will make their identities known.