The people sought places like this. A place where they could be with friends while drinking. A place where you could get over the depression of reality or maybe forget about reality and think of the future.
On the Way to a Smile "Episode: Tifa"
The 7th Heaven is a bar and restaurant owned and run by Tifa Lockhart in the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII; serving as a home base for many characters from Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children onwards.
The original bar, located in Midgar Slums' Sector 7, was destroyed along with the rest of the sector. Tifa opened a new 7th Heaven bar in the city of Edge after the fall of Meteor. People who don't have money can trade items for a drink. Cloud Strife sometimes visits Kalm to pick up supplies and inventory for the bar.
Story[]
On the Way to a Smile[]
After visiting many places in an attempt to continue their lives after Meteorfall, Tifa Lockhart, Cloud Strife and Barret Wallace returned to Midgar to help those still living within the ruined city. After creating a fermented alcohol, which he had learned how to make from his time in Corel, Barret wanted to start selling the liquor with the intention of helping the people of Midgar "unwind" from the stress. Deciding to build a bar much like the one AVALANCHE had operated before Meteorfall, the three, with the help of those they had helped previously, began transporting the necessary materials from Midgar to build the bar in the newly developing city called Edge.
While Barret and Cloud oversaw and assisted in the building, Tifa learned how to make the alcohol and developed the bar's menu. When it came time to deciding a name for the bar, Cloud's suggestions were considered too boring while Barret's made them think of monsters. While Tifa couldn't think of a name, Marlene suggested the name of the old AVALANCHE bar, as it reminded her of the fun times before Meteorfall and Sephiroth.
The day of 7th Heaven's opening was a success. While Barret acted as the bar's pseudo bouncer, Cloud acquired provisions and wine for the inventory despite his lack of experience with civilian life. A week later, Barret left to "settle his past", leaving Marlene in Tifa's care. Several months later, Cloud, after acquiring a new motorbike to aid in his supply runs (having previously having to resort to renting a bike or truck, or sometimes a chocobo), began developing the Strife Delivery Service to pay for his board and keep at the bar.
Following their adoption of Denzel, who had contracted Geostigma and had been found by Cloud near the Sector 5 slums church, business began to slow down and new customers seldom came due to fear of the boy's illness.
Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children[]
The new 7th Heaven in Edge.
Two years after Meteorfall, the city of Edge has developed into a bustling city. While Tifa continues running the bar, Cloud, while initially attempting to find a cure for Denzel, contracts Geostigma as well and, not wishing to tell Tifa, leaves to live his remaining life in the Sector 5 slums church without explanation. Blaming himself for Cloud's absence, Denzel took to sitting outside the bar on the curb when he was not in bed.
The Turks attempt to contact Cloud through his delivery service, inadvertently contacting Tifa instead. Following Tifa's encounter with Loz at the Sector 5 slums church and Cloud's collapse next to her due to his infection, the Turks bring the pair back to the bar, revealing that they had been keeping a watch on the establishment and wondered where Marlene and Denzel had gone.
During the incident where the Remnants of Sephiroth unleash Bahamut SIN in Meteor Square in their search of Jenova, Tifa retrieves Denzel while Cloud leaves Marlene at the bar (having rescued her from the Remnants in the City of the Ancients). Denzel heads for the bar while Tifa and Cloud join their friends in fighting Bahamut SIN. Denzel and Marlene remain within the bar as Cloud confronts Sephiroth, able to see the explosions from the battle in Midgar from their room in the bar's upper floor.
Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII-[]
After the events surrounding the emergence of Deepground, the former Tsviet Shelke also seems to have been taken in by Tifa and Cloud and resides at the bar after Deepground's defeat.
Layout[]
- Bar and restaurant
Bar and Restaurant.
7th Heaven has a bar and customer eating area with more up-to-date furnishings than its predecessor and various framed pictures on the walls of various locations on the planet. Behind the bar, Tifa has various crockery and food on display.
- Cloud's Room
Cloud's room.
Initially Cloud's living quarters, located across from Marlene and Denzel's room on the second floor, where he keeps souvenirs of his travels (including photos on the wall) and spare equipment (like spare tires for the Fenrir). The room is left barren after he leaves to live alone in the church. The business number for Cloud's delivery business links to a phone in his room.
- Marlene and Denzel's Room
Marlene and Denzel's room.
Located on the second floor across from Cloud’s room, Marlene and Denzel's room is filled with portraits and pictures of various locations and people, some of which were drawn by Marlene and Denzel themselves. The room's windows look out over the bar's entrance to an angel statue across the street.
Behind the scenes[]
DVD release (top), Venice Film Festival (bottom)
Concept art and promotional material for the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII appear as some of the framed pictures in the bar and its various rooms. Since Advent Children's appearance in the Venice Film Festival, some of the pictures shown on the bar wall have been altered as shown in the film's DVD release. The document pinned on a wall in 7th Heaven in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children has a picture of the North American cover art of Final Fantasy VII.
In addition to Corel wine, which is sold cheaply due to how easy it was to make, the bar also sells juices for children. They only serve juices that Marlene tried and liked.
The dining napkins of the Square Enix Artnia café once were adorned with the 7th Heaven emblem.
Gallery[]
Etymology and symbolism[]
The bar is named after the original bar in the Sector 7 slums of Midgar. Initially, Tifa was against using the name of the old bar, as it reminded her of a painful past. However, after coming to understand Marlene's reasons for choosing the name she understood that she couldn't erase her past by blocking it.
In religious or mythological cosmology, the seven heavens refer to the seven divisions of the Heaven, the abode of immortal beings, or the visible sky, the expanse containing the Sun, Moon and the stars. This concept dates back to ancient Mesopotamian religions and similar concept is also found in some Indian religions such as Hinduism, and in some Abrahamic religions such as Judaism, Islam and Catholicism.
The number 7 in Biblical references represents perfect completion. The number also has a significance in Quranic numerology.
The number seven reoccurs in Final Fantasy VII as an allusion; e.g. AVALANCHE is based on Sector 7, Shinra Building has 70 floors, there is a status called All Lucky 7s; the bar 7th Heaven follows with the other allusions to the number.