Personal Journeys: The last act

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Photos: Dante Stephensen of Dante's Down the Hatch prepares to serve his last fondue.

Dante Stephensen lights his pipe in The Survivor, the 87-year-old luxury rail car he calls home. It is packed with memories of his four decades at Dante's Down the Hatch, the iconic restaurant scheduled to close in July.

Dante chats with Jessica Burch. Personally greeting customers is a nightly habit for the 77-year-old owner, who says the jazz and fondue club has been the center of his life.

Dante performs the chocolate fondue ritual for (from left) Adam and Marti Hawkins, Linda and Quentin Pirkle, and other family members. The chocolate fondue is the club's signature item and requires advance notice. It includes Dante's lesson on the history of chocolate.

In this 1988 file photo, Dante collects crocodile eggs at the original Dante's Down the Hatch at Underground Atlanta. When Underground declined, Dante moved the club to its current location in Buckhead.

Dante (at the table, center-left) talks with guests on the sailing ship's deck. He originally dreamed of a place that offered "intelligent jazz" and an atmosphere conducive to proposals and prom dates. After 43 years, "The Hatch" is scheduled to make way for new development at its location on Peachtree Road in Buckhead. Closing night is set for the end of July.

Jill Hamrick (left) and Courtney Smith give Dante a kiss. Dante, who divorced young and never remarried, says he spends 86 hours a week on the floor of the club and talking to his customers. He refers to restaurant staff as his family and has vowed to give them money from the restaurant's pending sale.

Dante and Anya, his Siberian Huskey, stand outside The Survivor on a side track he leases from the railroad. Years ago, he would hook the car to trains and travel the country.

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Dante Stephensen lights his pipe in The Survivor, the 87-year-old luxury rail car he calls home. It is packed with memories of his four decades at Dante's Down the Hatch, the iconic restaurant scheduled to close in July.

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