Upscale Greek Gets a Reboot

Posted by estiator at 11 July, at 13 : 28 PM Print

COVER STORY

NYC’s Nostos is run by women, with an all-star team of partners. By Michael Kaminer

So when they opened Nostos—νόστος, in Greek—Papadopoulos and her team rethought every angle of the east Midtown Manhattan eatery, from décor to menu to service.

“We wanted to think out of the box when it comes to typical Greek food, and we wanted to move away from the usual blue-and-white décor,” which is what the partners inherited when they took over the short-lived Mykonian Garden restaurant in April.

Trained as a doula, Papadopoulos is no stranger to births. Her cohorts in Nostos include Mykonian Gardens’ original co-owner Alina Borys; veteran restaurateur Panos Seretis, Papadopoulos’ uncle; and George and Kosta Tsampas, who run New York’s King Souvlaki empire of five food trucks and one storefront.

With a pair of longtime chefs who are natives of Epirus and Rodos—and partners in life—the team set out to surprise diners with a menu that showcases “what we would eat at home, along with creative modern dishes and some traditional plates,” Papadopoulos says.

On the table, that translates as meat-forward choices including stews; tigania-inspired sausage, pork, and chicken bites “more authentic to the northern regions”; and feta ravasaki, a rarely seen starter that fries phyllo-wrapped feta topped with sesame seeds and honey. “It looks like a little note you fold up. A lot of places in Thessaloniki have this dish, but I’ve never seen it in America. I was so excited whenever I saw it there, and I love the that it’s on our menu.”

The elegant, subdued room feels as rich and distinctive as the food, with walls of undulating, underlit “ribbons,” hardwood floors, and a glassed-in patio that overlooks a garden that’s riotously colorful in warmer months. “Originally, we inherited everything that came with the old restaurant, including blue-andwhite décor,” Papadopoulos says.

It’s now a long way from the worn-down space they took over. “Everything was in disrepair, with old equipment, electrical issues, and a dishwasher that didn’t work,” she says. Guided by a Paris-based Greek designer friend, the team “removed a lot of things instead of adding them. We exposed an Art Deco–style copper brass bar that was built for the French restaurant that was in the space decades ago. Once we started subtracting, we saw how beautiful the space could be.”

Papadopoulos’ mother, Tina, “helped pick out the colors and curtains.” Her father, Lakis, also offered invaluable direction. “We all worked together as a team, but my father was a key component in all of our decisions,” she says.

Nostos couldn’t have found a more seasoned adviser; Lakis Papadopoulos is “a pioneer in Greek restaurants,” his daughter says, and the former owner of hotspots including Manhattan’s Voula and Astoria’s Pomme Café. “He was the first to bring gourmet food to the Greek community, and among the first to bring bouzouki music to sit-down restaurants. In Astoria, there was nothing that was both fancy and Greek, but he did it.” With Seretis, Papadopoulos’ uncle, her father also owned Ela Taverna in Brooklyn.

“From them, I learned how to work with people. Both of them love to collaborate, and they know how to work with a team,” she says. “They’ve mastered the balance of who does what, what shared goals look like, and who can help who. And after so many years in the business, they know how to talk to customers, manage personnel, and oversee the kitchen, which is invaluable for us to master as we grow Nostos.”

Papadopolous has roots in the Peloponnese on her father’s side and in Thessaloniki, Kastoria, and Kozani on her mother’s. Her father came to the United States around 1974, at the age of 21, to study business. Stefania’s mother emigrated with her family as a child. “Her father was a furrier from Kastoria who came to New York to expand his business. My mother grew up in Queens, speaking Greek. My papou’s accountant was Greek. The nail salon lady was Greek. Everyone was Greek,” she says.

After her parents met, “they decided to stay in New York. My father saw how New York was growing, he realized the opportunities here, and he thoughts it would be the best place to raise a family,” she says. “We’re three sisters. We grew up in the city, but went to Greece every summer. We learned Greek by interacting with Greek people.”

Papadopoulos also learned a lot about hospitality from her Hellenic soulmates, she says. “With everyone I met in Greece, there’s a sense that when someone is your guest, they get the best. People bring out their best food, just-cooked. It’s not just a plate of cookies. They open their hearts, and open their arms. They’re hospitable to people they don’t even know. It’s had an influence on the hospitality at Nostos. We want our guests to feel like their at someone’s home, getting treated the way we loved getting treated.”

Widely traveled, Papadopoulos has also drawn influence from other locales for Nostos’ magic formula. “In Italy, I fell in love with how the Italians keep their aesthetic. They know and love it, and they know how to adapt it without losing it. In Greece, I saw so much modern construction that lacked character. Greece keeps tearing down everything with an aesthetic and culture, and replacing it with concrete and glass. It’s not sustainable, and Greece has such strong potential just to be itself,” she says. Recent trips have also included the Czech Republic, Spain, England, and the Caribbean.

Nostos also feels especially personal to Papadopoulos because she lives nearby. “I’m just a couple of blocks from the restaurant,” she says. “This neighborhood has changed so much because of the Second Avenue subway. I was in high school when that was getting built, and I’d walk from Midtown to the Upper East Side for work. I’d think, ‘Wow, there’s nothing around here.’ Now young people are moving to the area, restaurants and cafés are opening, and there’s new energy.”

While opening has brought a few bumps, Papadopoulos is focused on Nostos’ future—and judging from the initial response in the media, on social channels, and in person, that future looks bright. “We didn’t really advertise much to get the word out about our opening, just some traditional PR and social media,” she says. “I went out and met some Greek people who told me they saw it on their feeds. That was a big compliment to my social media team, and it brought a lot of people in. We’re also working on relationships with hotel brands” to bring in guests who may stay nearby, she says.

Staffing was a particular challenge, even with Papadopoulos’ expert team in charge. “We’re a new restaurant. Some nights, we’d have no reservations on the books, and then boom—a hundred people came in. My dad and I filled glasses and bused tables. It was a struggle, but we found solutions by working with an agency that can send people on the fly,” she says. “We kept staff from the previous restaurant, but they had to learn a new menu and new systems.”

Media coverage of Nostos has focused on the fact that it’s “woman-run”; Papadopoulos and Borys, one of the partners, are overseeing dayto-day operations. “I always think a woman’s touch has something extra,” she says. “Maybe it’s something you can’t tell from your five senses, but it’s an extra feeling. Women add beauty to your life. My father and uncle are so excited about this restaurant, but they’re helping out for the enjoyment and excitement—they’re close to retiring. I took the lead because I thought I could add something. It’s not just about physical beauty of a space or environment. Beauty, according to the ancient Greeks, is harmony.

“But,” she adds with a laugh, “men are just as good.”

COVER STORIES HOME PAGE Cover Story, Michael Kaminer, Upscale Greek