Pappas restaurant to close!

Site Notices

TNVC Partners With Envision Technology - MARS Rangefinder & RAIL Family, MARS-Lc In-Stock!

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Pappas restaurant to close!

Posted: 9/18/2005 6:32:24 AM EDT

Many a mafia dinner meeting was conducted here, Donnie Brasco was a regular.

pinellas.tbo.com/pinellas/MGBLP1OUPDE.html

TARPON SPRINGS Spirited bouzouki music filled the kitschy gift shops and Greek restaurants throughout the sponge docks tourist area on Dodecanese Boulevard on Wednesday.

The upbeat sounds, however, did not reflect the mood among owners and managers of most businesses. Weighing on their minds were melancholy thoughts of a lost landmark, Pappas Riverside Restaurant.

The sprawling, 1,000-seat Greek dining and banquet facility on the shores of the Anclote River closed last week. "Pappas's," as locals call it, was founded near the sponge docks by Louis Pappamichalopoulos near the sponge docks in 1925. Its name then was the Riverside Cafe.

The name changed to Pappas, and about 30 years ago the restaurant moved into the huge facility perched on a small hill at the eastern end of Dodecanese.

Packed dining rooms for lunches and dinners were common, and it quickly became a linchpin of the local tourist economy. Throngs of diners would stroll down the boulevard after meals and spend money in the shops.

"It's very sad. Many of our merchants here got started because of the exposure Pappas brought us," said Theo Manglis, owner of Santorini Seafood and Grill on Dodecanese.

Business at Pappas fell after the family sold the restaurant to MK&B Enterprises three years ago. MK&B reported the sharp decline in a written statement this month.

Menu changes, smaller portions and inconsistent service hurt business, said Mike Skoutelis, owner of Mike's Gifts on Dodecanese, about 200 yards from Pappas. Skoutelis was a cook at Pappas for about 10 years, until 1989, he said.

"We used to be packed," Skoutelis said. "In the kitchen we refused to send a plate out if the portion wasn't big enough.

"The new owners changed the menu and really killed the place," he said. "They lost the local customers, and I started getting complaints in my store from tourists all the time."

What's next for the 4-acre, waterfront Pappas property is undecided. MK&B has not announced specific plans for what the company says will be a "mixed-use development."

A hotel is the hot rumor, and the one that makes most merchants smile along Dodecanese and on the Old World-looking side streets nearby.

Manglis, owner of Santorini Seafood and Grill, would rather see the revival of his former competitors.

"Everybody is talking about hotel, but I'd like the restaurant to come back," Manglis said of Pappas. "People came there and spent the whole day in Tarpon Springs, groups up to 500 sometimes. It was good for everybody.

"It's hard to believe that it's gone."

"People came there and spent the whole day in Tarpon Springs, groups up to 500 sometimes."

THEO MANGLIS On Pappas Riverside Restaurant

Posted: 9/18/2005 6:45:13 AM EDT

[#1]

Been a few years since I've been. Tarpon Springs is a step back in time, a little piece of Greece in the US. Mostly the old timers with a connection to the old country. Alot of culture there giving way to capitalism & materialism. Soon that little piece of Greek culture will be nothing but an animated Disney diorama.

And I've been craving some Greek food lately too.

Posted: 9/18/2005 6:47:52 AM EDT

[#2]

Nvere ate there before, but Gyro's are by far the ultimate sandwich type food I have ever eaten. Mmmmmmmmmmmmm goooooooooddddddd

Posted: 9/18/2005 6:49:04 AM EDT

[#3]

It wasn't anything special thats for sure.

Posted: 9/18/2005 6:49:41 AM EDT

[#4]

Pappas can go to hell. They wouldn't hire me back in the 60's.

Posted: 9/18/2005 6:53:54 AM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:
Pappas can go to hell. They wouldn't hire me back in the 60's.

Not sure whether to laugh or ...........well laugh!!

The food, service, and experience had gone downhill a long time ago. (still had the legendary salads however)

Great location for someone new.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Pappas restaurant to close!

General » General Discussion

Win a FREE Membership!

Sign up for the ARFCOM weekly newsletter and be entered to win a free ARFCOM membership. One new winner* is announced every week!

You will receive an email every Friday morning featuring the latest chatter from the hottest topics, breaking news surrounding legislation, as well as exclusive deals only available to ARFCOM email subscribers.

Warning

Confirm Action

About AR15.COM

Stay Connected

Newsletter

Contact Us