Follow & Binge The 7MS Catalog
One afternoon, Aaron and his wife Cori drive to their favorite café… and it’s gone. No sign. No trace. Just a completely different place where it used to be.
But days later, they return and everything has changed again. The café is back. The sign is there. As if nothing ever happened.
This is a true story about a moment that didn’t make sense, a shared memory Aaron and Cori can’t explain, and the unsettling possibility that, for a brief second, they may have slipped into another version of their lives.
*In Northeast Ohio? Stop by Kelly's Cafe, It's 100% open and part of this Universe!
*Dive deeper into the 7MS Universe and connect with Aaron on...
The Team:
Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato
Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt
Additional vocals: Cori Calafato
Art: Pete Whitehead
Original Theme Music: thomas j. duke
Additional Soundscape Design: Isaac Gehring
TRANSCRIPT
The Day Kelly’s Cafe Disappeared… Then Came Back
Aaron and his wife Cori discover a hidden gem serving the best crepes they’ve ever had—until one day, it vanishes. When it mysteriously reappears months later, what follows is a story that blurs the line between memory and reality, and raises a question that’s hard to shake: did they slip into another universe?
Have you ever been to a parallel universe?
I’m telling you right now, this is a wild story, but my wife Cori and I may have visited one. No joke. Stick with me. You’re not going to want to miss this one.
So many of you have been with me on this seven-minute journey. You know 7 Minute Stories is a short-form autobiographical podcast. All of my stories are based on true events in my life.
I’m bringing Cori in here real quick.
I grabbed my iPhone and recorded just a few seconds of her verifying this experience.
We’re at the dining room table.
“Do you remember the incident where we went into another dimension?”
“I do.”
“How have you been feeling about that?”
“Confused. Not scared… just very strange. I don’t know what happened.”
“Are you still thinking about it?”
“Almost every day.”
Have you ever had a dish that a place does so well it haunts you? You can’t get it out of your mind. You need it in your life.
This has only happened to me a few times, but one of those times was with a place called Kelly’s Cafe.
It’s about 10 to 15 minutes north of where we live in Brunswick, Ohio.
They do a lot of things well.
But they do crepes really well.
Now, I was never really a crepe guy. Every crepe I’d seen was sweet. Whipped cream, sugar, fruit. That’s cool. Not my thing. I’m a savory guy.
One day, on a recommendation, Cori and I went in.
Right away, I noticed something different. Alongside the sweet menu was a full savory menu.
It felt like they saw me.
Friendly people. Family restaurant energy. Hardworking staff. Real value.
And then I took a bite.
Cheddar cheese. Spinach. Bacon.
I looked at Cori and said, “I don’t think I’ve ever had anything better in my life.”
This wasn’t just the best crepe I’d ever had.
It might’ve been the best breakfast item I’d ever had.
And I knew from that moment… I couldn’t live without it.
We left, and all I could talk about was Kelly’s Cafe.
So I made it a tradition.
Not close enough to go every day, but just far enough to make it special.
When we had a free weekend, when we were kid-free, we’d go. We’d have brunch. We’d be out in the world together.
And every time I went in, I got the same thing.
And every time… it delivered.
It became part of my life.
Until it didn’t.
One afternoon in the fall of 2025, Cori and I made the drive.
Same road. Same parking lot.
We pull in.
Look up.
No sign.
Gone.
No Kelly’s Cafe.
The only thing there was a Puerto Rican spot we hadn’t noticed before.
And I’ll be honest…
I was in mourning.
I thought, “That’s it. I’ll never have that crepe again.”
Cori tried to make sense of it.
“You know, sometimes small businesses just close. Families move on.”
And we drove away.
But I couldn’t stop thinking about it.
For months, I asked people, “Do you know what happened to Kelly’s Cafe?”
One day, I asked a friend.
She said, “Yeah, I love that place.”
I said, “Too bad it’s gone.”
She said, “It’s not gone.”
I said, “What are you talking about?”
She said, “It’s still there. I was just there.”
Cori and I get in the car.
I’m sweating.
We drive to the exact same location.
Same parking lot.
And there it is.
The Puerto Rican spot…
and right next to it…
Kelly’s Cafe.
The sign. Intact.
People inside. Eating.
Business as usual.
Cori and I just look at each other.
I walk in.
“Hey, quick question… did you move? Did you take the sign down? Close and reopen?”
They look at me like I’m crazy.
“We’ve been here the whole time. Welcome back.”
We sit down.
I order the crepe.
We have the experience.
And then we drive home…
in silence.
Because it didn’t make sense.
I remember this movie, Sliding Doors.
Gwyneth Paltrow.
It plays with the idea of parallel lives. Different paths. Different versions of ourselves.
And I’m telling you…
something happened that day.
It’s like Cori and I slipped through a door.
We saw a version of the world where Kelly’s Cafe didn’t exist.
Where those crepes were gone.
And I didn’t like that world.
Because in the world we came back to…
Kelly’s Cafe never left.
It was there the whole time.
The only people who moved…
were Cori and I.
Whew.
Talk to you next week.