New Arrivals – December 2024
Posted by estiator at 13 December, at 16 : 36 PM Print
A coast-to coast glance at some of the industry’s newest additions
San Carlos, California
ELIA
eliarestaurants.com
This bright-white, 6,000-square-foot eatery is the third location for Elia, and the first with a fresh caviar and oyster bar, along with a wine cellar and charcoal grill. The restaurant hosts live jazz most nights, and a live DJ Fridays and Saturdays. The first Elia opened in Pleasanton, California, in 2022, where owner Faith Ulas lives, and grew to a second location in Walnut Creek a few months later. Chef Mehmet Duygu’s extensive menu ranges from dolmathes and escargot to horiatiki and seafood paella. Craft cocktails include the Greek Mastiha Mojito, with mastiha, rum, mint, and lime juice.
Salt Lake City, Utah
PARÉA
pareaon9th.com
Opened in October, this casual spot is the latest project from Manoli and Katrina Katsanevas, the owners of Manoli’s, a Greek restaurant nearby that focuses on locally sourced small plates. While Manoli’s is more of a fine-dining restaurant, Manoli Katsanevas told a local news site, Paréa is much more casual―part gyro spot, part market. The couple opened Paréa in a restored “vintage house” with a cozy brick fireplace.
New York City
TRAMWAY RESTAURANT
tramwayrestaurant.com
Prolific Manhattan restaurateur George Kalogerakos opened this diner beneath the Roosevelt Island Tram in east Midtown. It’s named for the Tramway Diner, which had operated a block west since 1963 and shuttered during the pandemic. In 1999, Kalogerakos founded the neighborhood’s always bustling 24-hour Ritz Diner alongside then-partner Dimitri Sarantopoulos. He and Sarantopoulos also helmed the beloved 24-hour Lyric Diner in Gramercy for 31 years, situated on Third Avenue and East 22nd Street, which closed in 2016, according to a local news site.
Bloomington, Minnesota
GYROPOLIS
gyropolis.com
This beloved fast-casual spot tripled its size in October after a brief closing for construction. From 1,400 square feet, Gyropolis has expanded to 4,000 square feet, taking over the site of a vacant gas station. According to Greek City Times, the city of Bloomington supported the project with tax incentives, the Bloomington Port Authority provided a matching façade improvement grant of $24,999, and Minnesota’s state government supplied a grant of nearly$60,000. Owner Constantine Contolatis installed a new kitchen, upgraded seating, a drive-through lane, and a patio.
Greenville, South Carolina
KOUZINA PIZZA & GYROS
eatkouzina.com
Greek immigrant brothers Vasili, Nektari, and Thanasi Skoulikaritis opened this Italian/Greek fast-casual spot in October. On the menu: Greek and Caesar salads; pizzas, including a Greek pie with spinach, tomato, olive, and feta; gyros; and portokalopita and baklava cheesecake for dessert. With their parents Sofokli and Georgia, the brothers emigrated to New Hampshire in 2001, and operated a pizzeria for years. Kouzina is their first food venture in their new South Carolina home.
Columbia, Maryland
THE BIG GREEK CAFÉ
biggreekcafe.com
It’s been 10 years since brothers Nikos and Simos Marmaras opened their first Big Greek Café in Silver Spring, Maryland. In October, the twins cut the ribbon on their fourth store. The brothers told a local news site that the concept for their mini-chain is modeled after their mother’s hospitality and cooking: “The number one thing when anybody entered our house was to have a meal with us,” The twins grew up in the business, helping their father, Vassilios Marmaras, run the iconic Golden Flame restaurant in Silver Spring.
Santa Monica, California
ORLA
orlasantamonica.com
Michael Mina, who now owns 30 restaurants nationwide, opened the newest branch of Orla in October. The oceanfront eatery, inside the Regent Santa Monica Beach hotel, melds Greek, Egyptian, and Mediterranean elements on a fresh, flavorful menu. Though raised in an Egyptian family, celebrity chef Michael Mina has said that Greek cooking has been a huge influence on his career. “As they do in Greece, we look to our bountiful ocean coast and fertile farmland,” Orla’s site declares. “In the Egyptian tradition, we celebrate bold spices and seasonings.”
Birmingham, Alabama
JOYLAN
Deatjoyland.com
Nick Pihakis, the powerhouse Alabama restaurateur and entrepreneur, is a partner in this fast-casual concept, “inspired by the original fast-food restaurants of yesteryear,” as its site explains. The Birmingham location, its second after Nashville, opened in October. Two more stores, in Nashville and Charleston, are set to open in 2025. Led by Chef Sean Brock, Joyland offers burgers, biscuits, fried chicken on a stick, hot dogs, pies, and made-to-order shakes.
Morristown, New Jersey
THE ADDRESS
theaddressnj.com
Local elected officials celebrated the opening of this Greek-Mediterranean eatery in late October. Behind the restaurant: “Selcuk, a professional, in the restaurant industry, and Onur, a skilled chef with accolades in high level cuisine”, according to a press release. Neither partner revealed a last name. The menu skews traditional, with avgelemono, gigantes, dolmadakia, and saganaki starters, along with salads, grilled fish, moussaka, and souvlaki. The Address also launched with an extensive catering menu.
