For the third annual year, local Mexican restaurant Zocalo hosted its Dia de los Muertos celebration on Monday, Nov 2.

The holiday (which in Spanish literally translates into “day of the dead”) celebrates the life and death of loved ones who have passed on over the past year. It is largely celebrated throughout Mexico, America and Canada.

As with any festival, celebrating Dia de los Muertos properly requires an exacting eye for tradition. Much like its food, Zocalo saw to it that its party was as authentic as possible.

Burning candles illuminated the large shrines in the center of the entrance to the restaurant, allowing patrons to read the names on tags hanging from numerous trees around the altar.

While dozens of such tags in honor of family members were on display, photographs of many celebrities who died recently also stood around the heavily-decorated table.

Images of Sen. Ted Kennedy, Farah Fawcett and Michael Jackson were among the recognizable portraits on display.

Skulls (calaveras in Spanish) could be found all over Zocalo. Most of the waiting staff and numerous attendees even wore black-and-white face paint to embody the dead and represent skeletons.

A traditional fire dance by Martina Lopez began on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant and led a procession in a square around the premises and back to the entrance.

Lopez swung two burning globes attached to chains around her body in varying patterns, the flames tracing orange arcs through the cool autumn night.

“It’s sort of scary when you first start doing it,” Lopez said. “But then you get burned a few times and you just get used to it!"

Those burns were well worth it, she said, as Dia de los Meurtos was a lively celebration.