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Æsop's Tables is a Storybrooke location featured on ABC's Once Upon a Time. It appears in the fifteenth episode of the sixth season.
History
As Emma mistakenly believes that Hook has left her, Regina and Mary Margaret want to cheer her up with a trip to the new pub in town, Æsop's Tables. When Emma is reluctant to spend the evening with them, they call in a fake fight at the bar. Emma shows up in her police vehicle and find the two of them there, and agrees to have a girls' night with them. Regina urges Emma to open up to her about her pain, but Emma doesn't want to. Meanwhile, Mary Margaret gets drunk and Regina and Emma watch as she taunts a trio of men dressed in Viking outfits, then challenges them to a dangerous version of darts with knife throwing - the loser pays both tabs. As it turns out, Mary Margaret can still throw knives perfectly, and not only does she beat the Vikings, she also robs the helmet right off one of them before she proceeds to play pool with them while wearing it. Emma opens up to the bartender, who introduces himself as Æsop. Emma takes a quick look at the drink menu, and is amused by the names the drinks, which, fittingly enough, are all named after stories from "Æsop's Fables." Emma opens up to Æsop and as they commiserate over their lost loves, Emma dab her tears with a cocktail napkin. ("A Wondrous Place")
Trivia
Fairy Tales and Folklore
- The name of the bar is a pun on "Æsop's Fables." Gideon poses as Æsop while he is pretending to be the bartender. ("A Wondrous Place")
- The drinks on the menu are named after stories from "Æsop's Fables," including "The Dog and the Wolf," "The Fox and the Grapes" and "The Ant and the Grasshopper." ("A Wondrous Place")
- If you take a very close look at the drinks menu (which is almost illegible), you can barely make out the names of some other drinks/fables: "The Eagle and the Fox,"[3] "The Monkey and The Dolphin"[4] and "The Lion and the Mouse."[4] ("A Wondrous Place")
Popular Culture
- The song "There's a Blessing" by Johnny Copeland is playing at the bar when Regina tries to get Emma to open up about her feelings. ("A Wondrous Place")
Set Dressing
- A painting of a ship is hanging on the wall behind the bar.[5] The same painting can be seen in Emma's room at the inn in "The Thing You Love Most"[6] and Graham and Regina's room in "The Price of Gold";[7] but with a different frame. It also appears in Edwin's house in the Once Upon a Time in Wonderland episodes "Down the Rabbit Hole"[8] and "Who's Alice."[9] It was later reused in Henry's apartment in "Hyperion Heights,"[10] "A Pirate's Life"[11] and "The Girl in the Tower,"[12] with the same frame that was used in the bar. ("A Wondrous Place")
- Some of the wall paintings show motifs from "Æsop's Fables," such as the lion from "The Lion and the Mouse"[13] (or one of Æsop's other fables about lions - there are several of them), "The Fox and the Stork"[14] and the boar from "The Wild Boar and The Fox."[15] ("A Wondrous Place")
- There is a vintage brass peacock fan fireplace screen[16] at the bar.[17] ("A Wondrous Place")
- The same fan appears in Jefferson's living room in "Hat Trick."[18]
Filming Locations
- The scenes at Æsop's Tables were filmed on a television set built at The Bridge Studios.[19]
Appearances
| Once Upon a Time: Season Six | ||||||||||
| "The Savior": | "A Bitter Draught": | "The Other Shoe": | "Strange Case": | "Street Rats": | "Dark Waters": | "Heartless": | "I'll Be Your Mirror": | "Changelings": | "Wish You Were Here": | "Tougher Than the Rest": |
| Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| "Murder Most Foul": | "Ill-Boding Patterns": | "Page 23": | "A Wondrous Place": | "Mother's Little Helper": | "Awake": | "Where Bluebirds Fly": | "The Black Fairy": | "The Song in Your Heart": | "The Final Battle Part 1": | "The Final Battle Part 2": |
| Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| Other Appearances | ||||||||||
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