The iconic Mona Lisa Restaurant in San Francisco is closing by the end of the week after nearly five decades in business.

Leonardo da Vinci started the iconic 'Mona Lisa' painting in Italy but finished it in France, where he sold it to the French King, François I.

Never say never. The Mona Lisa (1503), undoubtedly the main attraction at the Louvre, was stolen in 1911 and recovered two years later. The thief, Vincenzo Peruggia, was an Italian handyman working at the Louvre and was caught trying to sell it.

It was the Monday morning of August 21, 1911, the weekly closure day of the Louvre during the summer holidays, when an Italian mason named Vincenzo Peruggia carried out the most astounding art heist in modern times when he stole the Mona Lisa during the day, around 7 am.

After nearly 50 years in business, an iconic San Francisco restaurant is closing its doors. The Mona Lisa Restaurant, a fixture in the city’s North Beach neighborhood since 1979, will serve its final meal on Friday.