COMMENTS & CURIOSITIES:You won’t see tofu on this menu

The year 1922 was a long time ago. Were you around? I wasn’t. If you were, you get extra points as far as I’m concerned. Believe it or not, the Arches was around in 1922, brand shiny new and an instant landmark on the Pacific Coast Highway.

But like they say at the time machine store, that was then and this is now. In a few weeks, The Arches will be no more. Sad, yes, but not to worry. The Arches will be reborn as — drum roll, please — The Arches Grill and BBQ, at 508 29th St., the former site of Aubergine.

Why the move? Because leases come and leases go, and as they say in the South, The Arches’ lease done went. PCH to the Peninsula is not far as the crow flies, but it’s been one heck of a journey for the little red restaurant that could. If those walls could talk. On second thought, maybe it’s better they can’t, given the 80-year parade of Hollywood, sports and political poobahs who have come through the door.

I had a chance to sit down this week with Dan Marcheano, the heart and soul of The Arches, to get the 411 on the place — past, present and future. It’s not complicated. Dan Marcheano is The Arches and The Arches is Dan Marcheano. He has been the CFMIC (Chief Former Marine-in-Charge) of the place for 25 years, during which he elevated it from a popular local eatery to a first-cabin restaurant with a fiercely loyal following ranging from down the street to around the world.

Passionate? I’ll give you passionate. If Marcheano were a power plant, he could power a medium-sized city, in August, during a heat wave. He is everywhere — by the door, at the tables, in the kitchen, meeting, greeting, directing, taking a call, then more meeting, more greeting, then back to the tables. He is a funny, tough-talking ex-Marine who made his way to the Left Coast from Jersey City after he left the Corps. Plus, he’s Italian. So what’s not to like?

The Arches Grill and BBQ will open on 29th Street in the next week or so. For a short time, both The Arches and The Arches-the-Sequel will be open for business to avoid having to be throttle up, full-tilt boogie at the new place the day after the old one says arrivederci, which is Italian for ciao.

Where does the “BBQ” part come from? As the regulars know, The Arches’ upscale menu does not preclude excellent pulled pork and ribs on occasion that could stride through downtown Nashville like they owned the place. The barbecue offerings will be expanded, but the best of The Arches’ wonderfully decadent menu will be retained. If you’re looking for organic tofu, I would strongly recommend you look elsewhere. Steak Diane, abalone, stone crab claws, Beef Stroganoff, Yankee pot roast, braised lamb, Cobb Salad, Cherries Jubilee, need I go on? I didn’t think so. And that doesn’t include the specialty items, like the chili-bean soup (Thursdays only), which some people plan their lives around. My personal favorite? Coffee Diablo, an aptly named after-dinner heartbreaker concocted tableside with coffee, liqueurs, cloves and a flaming orange rind. Whenever I’m near it, I am helpless. It owns me. It makes me melt.

But Marcheano credits his success to his staff as much as to his food. In a business where an employee who lasts a year is an old-timer, Marcheano has had a fiercely loyal work force over the years, like Mike DiRose, Scotty Mosier and the late Gibby Fernandez, a fixture at The Arches for almost 25 years.

Stories? More than you can count. People do strange things in the normal course of events, let alone when they’re relaxed, having fun and slightly, umm, sedated. But no story about The Arches and Dan Marcheano is complete without two thumbs way up for all they do for the men and women of the United States Marine Corps. Marcheano and company have hosted countless USMC events, and raised thousands of dollars for Marine organizations like the Key Volunteers — spouses and dependents of Marines serving in Iraq.

So you see, it’s true: The more things change, the more they remain the same. The Arches lives on, with a twist. Just don’t ask for a tofu burger. You’ll embarrass yourself. I gotta go.