The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 61
Athens Corner Grill
A Dream Come True for
Brothers and Diners
Former New York lawyers Stanley and Dimos Tripodianos, who visited
their relatives in Roanoke as boys, have come to town to create a dining
destination steeped in family and Greek traditions.
BY SHARI DRAGOVICH * PHOTOS BY JOHN PARK
IMAGINE YOU AND YOUR BROTHER are successful attorneys living in New York City. You've
lived your entire life in the city-first Queens,
then Long Island. You've grown up surrounded by entertainment, art, eateries, Broadway
shows (I'm pretending, too)...you get the idea.
Now, imagine, while you like being an attorney, you
find it stressful (not hard imagining) and not completely
satisfying. It's fine, but not that fine. Your brother feels
similarly. So, the two of you decide to leave all the art,
Broadway, eateries, family, friends and city behind, and
go open a Greek restaurant 460 miles south in an Appalachian mountain town called Roanoke.
Whoa. That's some imagination.
That's exactly what Dimos and Stanley Tripodianos
did.
The Tripodianos story-especially as Dimos tells
it-is classically Greek: many characters all related with
beautiful but often difficult names; all fully engaged in
a life that somehow seems both strategic and a little
confusing. The Tripodianoses' father immigrated at the
THEROANOKER.COM
age of 16 to Roanoke from Greece with his 18-year
-old brother. Their goal? Earn enough money for their
parents and young sister to join them. The boys lived
with an uncle who had immigrated years prior. They
spoke no English and never finished school. But, they
were successful and soon the family was together again.
Eventually, the family moved to New York City where
Mr. Tripodianos-Dimos and Stanley's grandfather-
bought a restaurant across the street from a hospital in
Queens (remember this). Years later, and lots of story
left out, in this same hospital, Stelios (Stanley) and then
Dimos Tripodianos were born.
Naturally, being Greek, the brothers grew up steeped
in family and food. Dimos Tripodiandos-front-ofhouse man and spokesperson-says he loved his grandfather's restaurant, and when asked what he wanted to
do when he grew up, he'd say, "Own a restaurant."
"Oh, no, no," his parents would tell him, "Your
grandfather was always there, always there. You gotta
go to school."
"So, okay," he says, shrugging. "I went to school. I
excelled at school."
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2016 | 61
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The Roanoker - November/December 2016
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Roanoker - November/December 2016
The Roanoker - November/December 2016
Worth a Click
From the Editor
Lunch With
Streets of Roanoke
The Gist
The Calendar
2017 Dining Awards
The Family Stories Behind Two Fine Restaurants
A Foodie Blogger Shares a Few Recipes
Christmas Story at Hotel Roanoke
Kitchen With a (Lake) View
Finding the Right Medicine
Where Are They Now?
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - Intro
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - The Roanoker - November/December 2016
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - Cover2
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 3
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 4
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 5
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 6
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 7
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - Worth a Click
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 9
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - From the Editor
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 11
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - Lunch With
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 13
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - Streets of Roanoke
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 15
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - The Gist
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 17
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 18
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 19
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - The Calendar
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 21
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 22
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 23
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 24
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 25
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 2017 Dining Awards
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 27
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 28
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 29
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 30
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 31
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 32
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 33
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 34
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The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 36
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 37
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 38
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The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 40
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 41
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 42
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 43
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The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 47
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 48
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 49
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 50
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 51
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 52
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 53
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 54
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 55
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 56
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 57
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 58
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 59
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - The Family Stories Behind Two Fine Restaurants
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 61
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 62
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 63
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 64
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 65
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 66
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 67
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - A Foodie Blogger Shares a Few Recipes
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 69
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 70
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 71
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 72
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 73
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 74
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 75
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 76
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 77
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 78
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 79
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - Christmas Story at Hotel Roanoke
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 81
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - Kitchen With a (Lake) View
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 83
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 84
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 85
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 86
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 87
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 88
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 89
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 90
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 91
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - Finding the Right Medicine
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 93
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 94
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 95
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 96
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - 97
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - Where Are They Now?
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - Cover3
The Roanoker - November/December 2016 - Cover4
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