This story has been updated to correct an error. Line cook Donna Penix retired four years ago.
CANTON ‒ Athens Restaurant, a fixture of Greek cuisine for 50 years, is closing.
Maria and Ted Karasarides opened Athens Restaurant in 1976, originally on Harrison Avenue SW in the space now occupied by Sister’s Soul Food. Nine months later, they relocated to their current home — a former church at 816 Harrison — to gain additional space and parking. The Karasarides also introduced Stark County to its first gyro sandwich.
Maria, 87, affectionately known as “Yiayia,” still arrives at the restaurant at 5:30 a.m. each day to cook and prepare pastries.
Her daughter Dee Dwyer, who also lives in Stark County, owns the restaurant with her mother and has been serving as the line cook for the past four years. Dwyer typically arrives at 5 a.m. and leaves around 5 p.m., working the grill and greeting customers who have become friends and extended family.
Also working alongside is her husband, Tom, a Timken Co. retiree who has worked at the restaurant since his retirement 18 years ago, and her niece, Natasha.
A home away from home
Jake Kinsley, a salesman from Jackson Township, said Athens Restaurant has long been a regular stop whenever he is in Canton.
“Whenever I’m in town, I stop in,” Kinsley said. “I just love this place — the food, the people who work here and even the other customers. It’s like a home away from home.”
Community connections
Debra Lindstrom, a retired schoolteacher who lives in Summit County, said she and her daughter Tisha Lindstrom, a stay-at-home mother who lives in Canton, were shocked by the closure announcement, which was made on social media earlier this month, but understood the decision.
“The restaurant business is tough, and the people here work so hard to make things feel just right,” Debra Lindstrom said.
They both said they would miss that welcoming atmosphere.
A bittersweet goodbye
Dwyer became emotional while discussing the restaurant’s closing.
“It’s bittersweet,” she said. “All the people who have come through these doors, our customers and our staff, have become friends.”
Dwyer has been part of Athens Restaurant since she was 14. Over the years, she worked alongside her parents, her sister Kara, her niece Natasha, and Donna Penix, the line cook of 45 years who was a central part of the restaurant until she retired four years ago.
Looking ahead
Although Ted Karasarides died in 1998, the family has remained close. Dwyer said the decision to close comes as she looks toward spending more time with her family.
“It’s time for me to slow down a bit and enjoy my family,” she said. “I have four adult kids — Paul “PJ” Lombardi, Gus Lombardi, Teddy Lombardi and Maria Guidone — and grandkids Stella and Julius, with a baby sister for Julius expected Jan. 19. I want and need to be there for them.”
The family connection extends beyond the restaurant. Dwyer refers to her niece Natasha Maierhofer as her fifth kid, and the family members all live in the same neighborhood in Stark County.
Gratitude and reflection
Dwyer said Athens Restaurant succeeded because of its loyal customers and dedicated staff.
“It may sound funny to some people, but I’ve never dreaded coming to work,” she said. “I love interacting with people every day. I’m not on social media. Work has been my Facebook in real life.”
Favorite dishes and final days
Customers said they will miss Yiayia’s pastitsio; the flambéed cheese dish saganaki; and the popular gyro bowl.
Tim Hartman, a librarian from Portage County, said he will miss the Athenian, a Mediterranean-inspired chopped steak sandwich platter. Lori Echols, a legal aid assistant from Stark County, said she will miss the Athens BLT, featuring bacon, lettuce and tomato on pita bread with feta cheese and house dressing.
“Every type of person has come through these doors over the many years, and they all will be missed,” Dwyer said.
Customers are asked to use any remaining gift cards by the restaurant’s final day, Dec. 24. Until then, Athens Restaurant will be open from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.
Bev Shaffer, Food & Drink reporter for The Canton Repository, can be reached at bshaffer@usatodayco.com or 330-580-8318.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Beloved Athens Restaurant in Canton will close after 50 years
Reporting by Bev Shaffer, Canton Repository / The Repository
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