Thank God for smart Greeks from Illinois like John Aravosis! :-)

[papau]

Thank God for smart Greeks from Illinois like John Aravosis! :-)

BIG Gannon story coming tomorrow
by John in DC - 2/13/2005 07:26:00 PM

I'm wrapping it up now. It's big. Very big. I've just contacted him for comment. If he now decides to go public to pre-empt my story, well, you heard it here first. Stay tuned.

http://www.americablog.org /

:toast:

:-)

[Tweed]

1. Whoever came up with the menu at Artopolis is genius!

It's very cheap compared to the quality of food you get. I call it fine dining for college students, but really, everyone enjoys.

[papau]

2. I agree - And it is close to Greek Islands Restaurant! :-)

Greek Islands Restaurant
[phone]
200 S Halsted St
Chicago, IL 60661

I took a short cab ride from the Loop -and was not watching where we went - to "Greek Town" - but arrived - much too quickly I thought - at a restaurant where there was an arch with sign that said "Greek Town" - similar to what you see in Chinatowns across the US but is it really in "Greek Town"?

As I recall the old Greek Town was about 4 miles south of Congress (now called "Eisenhower") and the Toll Road - near where IIT is now. And the area was destroyed and the Greeks told to move when they built the highway and IIT - But my memory is hazy.

But Artopolis is close to Greek Island - and I assume Diana's is somewhere near there - and that certainly makes it a Greek neighborhood!

[Inland]

3. Yeah, no Greeks live there:

The Greek community was largely displaced by U of I and the expressways, to the extent they hadn't already taken off for greener pastures.

I suspect the restaurants and stores on Halsted is simply what little was left.

I don't know about any settlement down by IIT, but it wouldn't surprise me if there was one.

[papau]

4. Thanks for the memory help - I meant U of I and tollway - IIT got into

my skull for some reason.

Diana's - before it became the huge resturant - was a couple of tables in back of the meat freezer where you purchased the whole lambs for BBQ! Next to it were the record shops, the clothing stores, the bookstores, more grocery stores, a couple of music stores, at least 4 or 5 resturants, one of which had traditional belly dancing on the Weekend (always honoring the oldest in the room with the most attention !!!)

For a couple of blocks during the summer all you heard was Greek music!

Everybody was "Cousin" - and damn if it wasn't true - the whole Med is one big cousin basin! Granted on occassion you had to drop back 300 years and 20th to 40th cousins - but everyone was "cousin" :-)

Anything under 10th was a close relative - under 3rd cousin and you saw them at dinner.

"Uncle's" resturant was south - nearer the White Sox - in an area along with a few Greeks - and of course when wise ass kid challenged the idea he was an "Uncle" he was proven wrong - again.

[grace0418]

5. Hey I'm Greek, I'm from Illinois and I'm reasonably intelligent

so thanks! ;)

[papau]

6. Cousin !!!! How are you ???? I believe the response is "NO PROBLEM"

or Ga-la' :-)

Where abouts in Illinois?

I'm obviously North Shore/Chicago (indeed Waukegan in 1949).

[grace0418]

7. No problem!

Actually, I got all kinds o problems but I won't burden you! ;)

I live on the north side of the city, in Lincoln Square.

[seventythree]

8. How did a kudos for AmericaBlog turn into

a thread on Greek restaurants? Yah, John is wonderful -- just magnificent on Aaron Brown the other day -- and I didn't know he was from Chicago -- living where, now? Or is the blog out of the windy?