In 1874 Dimitri Kasimatis became the first Greek immigrant to come to Lowell, according to city records. He opened a fruit shop on Middlesex Street.
Perhaps that should not be surprising, as food became one of the Greek culture’s most prominent contributions to the Merrimack Valley. Nicholas Karas, 81, of Lowell, is the author of two books about Greek immigration to the Valley, and particularly, to Lowell, where the Greek population concentration was greatest. Although some immigrants settled in Haverhill, Newburyport, Nashua, and Manchester, Karas says the majority wound up in Lowell working in the textile mills.
“Many were peasants from rural areas, so they really had no skills to speak of,” he explains. “Of course there were no social services. So they had to get jobs as quickly as possible and the mills offered jobs at low wages, but wages nonetheless.”
The first wave of Greek immigration started in 1895, and the population continued to grow until 1920. The second wave took place following World War II, between 1950 and 1965.
Karas’s parents came to America during that first wave. At its peak in 1920, there were thirty-three Greek restaurants and twenty-eight Greek coffee houses in Lowell alone. And in 1917, Greek immigrant Arthur Demoulas opened a grocery shop on Dummer Street, the first of what would become the Market Basket empire.
There are far fewer Greek restaurants in the area today, but those that remain still prepare their food with the pride that Karas says is customary. “I still can’t eat anything out of a can. Very few items in a Greek kitchen came from a can,” he says. “Food had a special place in our households. It wasn’t like today when we grab something to eat and watch TV and so forth. The meal was a place to sit down with the family, especially on Sunday. It was a ritual.”
While you may not know anyone who can prepare an authentic Greek home-cooked meal, you can always check out one of these notable spots in the Valley.
Olympia Restaurant
453 Market Street Lowell, MA
(978) 452-8092 www.newolympia.com
Sunday–Monday, 11 a.m.–9 p.m.,
Tuesday–Saturday, 11 a.m.–10 p.m.
The Olympia Restaurant has been around longer than any Greek restaurant in the Valley, and is also Lowell’s oldest restaurant. Opened in 1952 by Socrates Tingas, it is located in the Acre neighborhood, which was once densely populated by Greeks. Olympia was an especially hot spot in the 1970s, when Greek entertainers routinely performed in the restaurant’s Zorba Room lounge. The Zorba Room is now a function room, and the restaurant is managed by Tingas’s nephew Konstantinos Cocalis. Cocalis said that despite the years, the food has been a constant.
“People have been coming here for fifty years, and now they bring their children and grandchildren,” he comments. “They always say the food tastes the same as it always has.”
Athens Restaurant
31 Central Street Manchester, NH
(603) 623-9317
Sunday–Thursday, 11:30 a.m.–9 p.m.,
Friday–Saturday, 11:30 a.m.–10 p.m.
Located a bit off the beaten path, you could easily miss this spot. But if you like the Olympia, chances are you’ll like Athens Restaurant. Brothers Elias and Sam Kourtis come from the same family that owns and operates Olympia. They spent years as chefs in Lowell before moving north of the border to open Athens Restaurant thirty years ago. At one time, it featured live music and belly dancers, but today the focus is on the food.
“Back then, we were very young and we could do all that. Now we’re too tired,” explains Elias’s wife and Athens manager Vagelitsa Kourtis. While the two brothers run the kitchen, Vagelitsa plays hostess and manager, though she does make one special dish on weekends: galactobouriko, a custard pastry. She recommends that first-time visitors indulge in the moussaka (a baked eggplant casserole) and the augolemono, an egg-lemon soup with chicken and rice flavor. “It doesn’t sound very appealing, but it’s delicious,” she says.
Evzon 83
Parkhurst Road Chelmsford, MA
(978) 454-2552
Tuesday–Sunday, 11 a.m.–9 p.m., Closed Monday
When John and Kiki Kalogerakos came to America in 1968, they had no intention of opening a restaurant. But after years of cooking for a huge family, Kiki says it seemed like a logical progression. “I went to culinary school (in Greece) after sixth grade, and I always cooked for our family get-togethers. So why not?” Located in a Drum Hill shopping plaza on the Lowell border, Evzon is a bit smaller and downscale than the other Greek restaurants in the area. But Kiki says her luncheon specials and lamb meals can match up with the best of them.
Athenian Corner
207 Market Street Lowell, MA
(978) 458-7052 www.atheniancorner.com
Sunday–Wednesday, 11 a.m.–9 p.m.,
Thursday–Saturday, 11 a.m.–10 p.m.
If you’re up for a more celebratory evening, the Athenian Corner might be your best bet. With live Greek and Middle East music and dancing on Thursday through Saturday, the audience sometimes becomes the performance. “People get swept up in the atmosphere, the food, the Greek wine, and the entertainment. And the next thing you know you’ve got a line of people dancing,” says manager Teddy Panagiotopoulos. His father, Stavros, opened the Athenian Corner in 1974, and it offers a cozy ambience as well as authentic cuisine. The restaurant has become so popular that they are planning to expand this summer.
Greek Cuisine in the Valley – Spring 2007
Perhaps that should not be surprising, as food became one of the Greek culture’s most prominent contributions to the Merrimack Valley. Nicholas Karas, 81, of Lowell, is the author of two books about Greek immigration to the Valley, and particularly, to Lowell, where the Greek population concentration was greatest. Although some immigrants settled in Haverhill, Newburyport, Nashua, and Manchester, Karas says the majority wound up in Lowell working in the textile mills.
“Many were peasants from rural areas, so they really had no skills to speak of,” he explains. “Of course there were no social services. So they had to get jobs as quickly as possible and the mills offered jobs at low wages, but wages nonetheless.”
The first wave of Greek immigration started in 1895, and the population continued to grow until 1920. The second wave took place following World War II, between 1950 and 1965.
Karas’s parents came to America during that first wave. At its peak in 1920, there were thirty-three Greek restaurants and twenty-eight Greek coffee houses in Lowell alone. And in 1917, Greek immigrant Arthur Demoulas opened a grocery shop on Dummer Street, the first of what would become the Market Basket empire.
There are far fewer Greek restaurants in the area today, but those that remain still prepare their food with the pride that Karas says is customary. “I still can’t eat anything out of a can. Very few items in a Greek kitchen came from a can,” he says. “Food had a special place in our households. It wasn’t like today when we grab something to eat and watch TV and so forth. The meal was a place to sit down with the family, especially on Sunday. It was a ritual.”
While you may not know anyone who can prepare an authentic Greek home-cooked meal, you can always check out one of these notable spots in the Valley.
Olympia Restaurant
453 Market Street Lowell, MA
(978) 452-8092 www.newolympia.com
Sunday–Monday, 11 a.m.–9 p.m.,
Tuesday–Saturday, 11 a.m.–10 p.m.
The Olympia Restaurant has been around longer than any Greek restaurant in the Valley, and is also Lowell’s oldest restaurant. Opened in 1952 by Socrates Tingas, it is located in the Acre neighborhood, which was once densely populated by Greeks. Olympia was an especially hot spot in the 1970s, when Greek entertainers routinely performed in the restaurant’s Zorba Room lounge. The Zorba Room is now a function room, and the restaurant is managed by Tingas’s nephew Konstantinos Cocalis. Cocalis said that despite the years, the food has been a constant.
“People have been coming here for fifty years, and now they bring their children and grandchildren,” he comments. “They always say the food tastes the same as it always has.”
Athens Restaurant
31 Central Street Manchester, NH
(603) 623-9317
Sunday–Thursday, 11:30 a.m.–9 p.m.,
Friday–Saturday, 11:30 a.m.–10 p.m.
Located a bit off the beaten path, you could easily miss this spot. But if you like the Olympia, chances are you’ll like Athens Restaurant. Brothers Elias and Sam Kourtis come from the same family that owns and operates Olympia. They spent years as chefs in Lowell before moving north of the border to open Athens Restaurant thirty years ago. At one time, it featured live music and belly dancers, but today the focus is on the food.
“Back then, we were very young and we could do all that. Now we’re too tired,” explains Elias’s wife and Athens manager Vagelitsa Kourtis. While the two brothers run the kitchen, Vagelitsa plays hostess and manager, though she does make one special dish on weekends: galactobouriko, a custard pastry. She recommends that first-time visitors indulge in the moussaka (a baked eggplant casserole) and the augolemono, an egg-lemon soup with chicken and rice flavor. “It doesn’t sound very appealing, but it’s delicious,” she says.
Evzon 83
Parkhurst Road Chelmsford, MA
(978) 454-2552
Tuesday–Sunday, 11 a.m.–9 p.m., Closed Monday
When John and Kiki Kalogerakos came to America in 1968, they had no intention of opening a restaurant. But after years of cooking for a huge family, Kiki says it seemed like a logical progression. “I went to culinary school (in Greece) after sixth grade, and I always cooked for our family get-togethers. So why not?” Located in a Drum Hill shopping plaza on the Lowell border, Evzon is a bit smaller and downscale than the other Greek restaurants in the area. But Kiki says her luncheon specials and lamb meals can match up with the best of them.
Athenian Corner
207 Market Street Lowell, MA
(978) 458-7052 www.atheniancorner.com
Sunday–Wednesday, 11 a.m.–9 p.m.,
Thursday–Saturday, 11 a.m.–10 p.m.
If you’re up for a more celebratory evening, the Athenian Corner might be your best bet. With live Greek and Middle East music and dancing on Thursday through Saturday, the audience sometimes becomes the performance. “People get swept up in the atmosphere, the food, the Greek wine, and the entertainment. And the next thing you know you’ve got a line of people dancing,” says manager Teddy Panagiotopoulos. His father, Stavros, opened the Athenian Corner in 1974, and it offers a cozy ambience as well as authentic cuisine. The restaurant has become so popular that they are planning to expand this summer.