Sumith Prasad
The eighth episode of the second season of Apple TV+’s science fiction series ‘Severance’ opens a window into Salt’s Neck, the hometown of Harmony Cobel. The former severed floor manager at Lumon Industries returns to the house where she grew up, looking for a highly significant and consequential document. Fearing that the henchmen of Lumon will follow her, she seeks the help of Hampton, a waiter/proprietor at The Drippy Pot Cafe, to take her to her home. The serene but mysterious appeal of the seaside town and the quiet ambiance inside the eatery are expected to leave an impression on the minds of the ardent admirers of the show!
Towns in Newfoundland and Labrador Double For Salt’s Neck
Salt’s Neck is a fictional town created by the writers of ‘Severance’ exclusively for the science fiction series, just like Kier, PE. In real life, the region presented as the seaside town can be traced back to Newfoundland and Labrador, the easternmost province of Canada. The production department utilized many locations in the province to shoot the scenes set in Salt’s Neck, including Bonavista, Keels, and the community of Port Union, which is part of the town of Trinity Bay North. As per reports, a former fish plant in Trinity Bay North was turned into a Lumon ether factory, where Harmony and Hampton discuss going to the former’s house despite the watchful eyes on her.
Patricia Arquette, the lead actress of the episode, has only great things to say about the sites that collectively became Salt’s Neck for the show. “Oh man, it was so cool. It’s so killer up there. I mean, it’s so, so far away. And because it’s so far away, it’s one of these frozen-in-time bubbles of a place. You feel the turn of the century because you can hear the Irish brogue still there from the Irish settlers who came, you know, in the late 1700s or the early 1800s,” Arquette told Decider. “It’s so frozen and cut off from everything that things feel like 20 years behind in some kind of way — in a good way,” she added.
The filming of the series in Newfoundland was a significant boost for the local communities, who were excited to see Arquette and Ben Stiller, the director of the episode, in their province. “It gives you a sense of pride after people coming here and wanting to shoot in your community,” Darryl Johnson, the town manager for Trinity Bay North, told CBC. Over the years, Newfoundland has hosted the filming of several high-profile projects like ‘Severance,’ including Prime Video’s ‘Reacher,’ Starz’s ‘American Gods,’ and the superhero film ‘Aquaman.’
A Real Café Stands in For The Drippy Pot Cafe
Like Salt’s Neck, Hampton’s The Drippy Pot Cafe is also fictional. However, the production department of ‘Severance’ transformed an actual cafe into the eatery we see in the eighth episode of the show’s second season. Bicycle Picnics Cafe & Bistro, located at 34 Mockbeggar Road in Bonavista, Newfoundland, doubles for the establishment in the episode. While Hampton’s cafe may seem like a quiet, gloomy destination, Bicycle Picnics can’t be any more different. It is a lively and pleasing eatery that overlooks the Bonavista Harbor.
The highlight of the real-life cafe is the range of services it offers to customers. In addition to a conventional sit-down dining space, the eatery can provide guests with a cycling experience with bike rentals and a packed picnic basket for those who want to step out to marvel at the beauty of the Atlantic Ocean. The employees at the cafe will also be happy to let you know about the ideal picnic spots near the eatery. With locally foraged ingredients, signature dishes, and house-baked treats, Bicycle Picnics can easily win one’s heart with their menu.
Read More: Severance: Is Pip’s Bar & Grille a Real Restaurant?
