“You’re a young girl, alone. Stay on the main street,” Melvin, the Uber driver, says as Greektown comes into view. The journey to this neighborhood in southeast Baltimore involves passing through seedy neighborhoods with boarded up row homes and streets littered with glass. A mural showcasing Greek traditions, such as people dancing and celebrating together, pulls you into this neighborhood with a first glance of what you are going to experience.
Although Melvin warns against it, Greektown seems inviting with white and blue painted three-story residential buildings standing shoulder to shoulder. It has been home to Greek immigrants since the early 20th century.[1] At first, Greektown was called Highlandtown, or the Hill, and the area was predominantly German.[2] When civil war erupted in Greece in 1946, Greek immigrants fled to Baltimore and moved here.[3] Having established a strong community, the Greek families wrote a petition for the name to be changed to Greektown in the 1980s.[4] The neighborhood still reflects the culture its residents have wanted to maintain.
Welcome to Ikaros
On the corner of Eastern Avenue and Ponca Street, Ikaros, a Greek restaurant that has been run by a single family for over fifty years, lures you in with its blue awning. Once inside, you’re welcomed into a Greek home with walls made of white limestone. Vases rest in wooden window sills, and photographs of Greece adorn the walls. Two pointillist paintings of musicians capture your attention when you discover they were painted by Xenos Kohilas, the owner. The waitress recommends spinach pies as an appetizer, and Moussaka as an entrée. The flakey crusts of the pies contrast with the mushrooms, sliced potatoes, and eggplants of the Moussaka that fall apart as if it has been baked for hours in a village oven.
Athena Kohilas, the owner’s sister, checks on each customer. She says Ikarus “is my home. I started here in 1973.” It’s not just her home: families lay claim to it as well. Kris, enjoying a meal with her husband and mother-in-law, says, “I have been coming here since I was a little girl.” She adds, “You can’t beat this. It’s the best Greek food in town.”
Two blocks from Ikaros is “Greek Town” Bakery and Delicatessen, a little shop housing homemade goods and Greek treats. Upon entrance, the store clerk, who speaks mostly Greek, says, “Boss is in New York getting more inventory.” Inside the narrow store, meats, cheeses, and olives are waiting to be picked up.
Candied almonds and imported chocolates sit in front of refrigerated pans of baklava and kataifi. The store clerk points at a package of Moustokouloura, or grape cookies, and says, “favorite.” He waves goodbye, and as the door shuts, people smile at each other as they pass by on the street.
Need a haircut? Well, walk across the street from “Greek Town,” and you will find Barber Salonkathery’s, owned by Jose Gomez. He opened his barber shop three years ago. Gomez, whose family is Hispanic, represents the shift from a significantly Greek to an increasingly Hispanic population. Drop by for to pick from a range of haircuts from pixie cuts to mohawks.
If you keep walking down Eastern Avenue, you will discover a taco truck, which is an extension of Mylos, a Greek restaurant where you can order flaming cheese. A miniature trailer parked on the street corner, Alvaro, who is awaiting customers, explains that his truck is used for crowded evenings and tacos to-go when everyone is out and about. Alvaro says, “I really like working here. There are a lot of nice people, and it’s a close community.” Hugging this restaurant, a residential street calmly peers out at people waiting for their meals.
Across from Ikaros on Ponca St., St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church spans a block and is continuing to grow to accommodate a currently waitlisted daycare. You must see the ornate stained-glass windows that line the left wall, and the alter that depicts Jesus Christ’s life, as well as the apostles. A few members of the church brought a mosaic depicting Mary with Jesus from a trip to Greece, and it hangs above the sanctuary’s entrance. Stan Cavouras, the Sexton, explains that he grew up in this neighborhood and that the church is the center of the community. It sponsors dance groups, maintains a daycare, and runs a Greek school. It hosts Greek Folk Festival, which celebrates all parts of Greek culture and religion, and Cavouras says, “if you don’t see each other during the year, you come back during the festival.”
Works Cited
Athena Kohilas. “Ikaros.” Interview by Addy Perlman. February 16, 2020.
Bohemian Baltimore. “Sign for Greektown, Baltimore.”Wikimedia Commons, Baltimore, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Greektown_sign_08.JPG.
Jose Gomez. “Barber Salonkathery’s.” Interview by Addy Perlman. February 16, 2020.
Kris. “Greektown.” Interview by Addy Perlman. February 16, 2020.
Schleicher, Brad. “INSIDER'S GUIDE TO GREEKTOWN.” Baltimoresun.com, 26 Oct. 2018, www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2008-05-11-0805080040-story.html
Stanley Cavouras. “St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church.” Interview by Addy Perlman. February 16, 2020.
Unger, Mike. “Without Caving to Time or Trends, Baltimore's Greektown Lives On.” Baltimore Magazine, 11 Feb. 2020, www.baltimoremagazine.com/section/fooddrink/greektown-baltimore-lives-on-without-caving-to-time-trends.
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