the Globe & Laurel a marine haven Corps values served here six days a week

By CATHY DYSON

Rick Spooner announces he's "the world's worst interview," then proceeds to talk for two hours.

He doesn't go on about himself or even the Globe & Laurel, a restaurant he and his wife, Gloria, have operated in Triangle since 1968.

The retired major--who served in three wars--tells anyone who will listen everything he knows about his beloved Marine Corps.

And the 81-year-old, who fought in the Battle of Saipan during World War II and still works six days a week, knows a lot.

"It's amazing, some of the things you learn," said Don Cahill, a former policeman, current financial consultant and regular customer. "You honestly feel like you've earned three credits of continuing education by coming here for lunch."

The Globe & Laurel is like a museum that happens to serve steak and ale. (And Rick Spooner likes to point out there's never been a brawl at his place, even though his customers are the toughest people in the world.)

The walls and tables of the restaurant are decorated with Marine memorabilia. There are shoulder patches and sidearms, a bugle and drum, canteen, trench knives and sharpshooter badges from the past three centuries.

Some restaurants post photos of movie stars who have eaten there.

The Globe & Laurel has autographed pictures of generals and presidents.

People have given Rick Spooner their personal collections of medals and mementos because they know he'll display them proudly.

That's why the walls of the Globe & Laurel have items, such as a collection of Marine emblems used over the years, that the nearby National Museum of the Marine Corps doesn't, said Lt. Gen. Ron Christmas.

He's president of the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation, a group that got its informal start around a table at the Spooners' place.

"Marines are all about their history, all about their legacy, all about 'Semper Fidelis,'" Christmas said. "The Globe & Laurel represents that."

It's also near and dear to law enforcement officers who train at Quantico, said Kurt Crawford, public affairs specialist at the FBI Academy.

Somehow, it became a tradition for graduates to give Rick Spooner a patch from their home departments.

He has decorated the ceilings with embroidered circles and triangles from jurisdictions from every state in the nation and several foreign countries.

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RICK SPOONER did a lot of traveling during his 29 years with the Marine Corps. That's why his wife, Gloria, doesn't want to be anywhere but the restaurant at this point in her life. The 77-year-old said she moved around enough when her husband was on active duty.

Rick Spooner modeled the restaurant after some of his favorite pubs and taverns in England and Scotland. He even named the place after the symbols of the Royal Marines of the United Kingdom.

The menu hasn't changed much at the Globe & Laurel Restaurant since 1968. A customer who hadn't been there for 25 years recently called, and Rick Spooner assured him the restaurant still serves French onion soup with every dinner.

Lunch is served Monday through Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. A row of tables along the wall near the bar is called "The Privates' Mess" and is reserved for former officers and their families.

Dinner is served Monday through Saturday from 5 to 9:30 p.m. Steaks are favorites, with names such as Semper Fi and Gung-Ho. So is the prime rib.

"We close all Sundays and national holidays," Rick Spooner said. "We are not politically correct--and you can print that."

Date published: 4/1/2007

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