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I was looking for someone to work as an assistant
manager; I was a general manager. I
saw his work ethic and the way he dealt with
customers and the way he dealt with people
and I approached him about the job.”
It was not long before the two began
scouting locations for a bar of their own.
“I know the neighborhood and I know
the potential that it has for business, especially
this kind of business,” Alatsas
said. “We looked at a few different locations,
but we knew this was the one. We
loved the space.”
“Plus, Astoria was a place that we had all
worked in,” Hatzopoulos added. “It was the
people we knew the most and the area we
knew the most. We feel more comfortable
in Astoria.”
And their clear affection for the area
hasn’t just led them to set up shop here;
they have also made sure that the space
provides a creative outlet for community
members. The wonderful murals on the
walls of the bar were painted by local artists
who had previously worked on the Welling
Court Mural Project.
“We had some local artists come and do
some paintings for us,” Alatsas said. “When
we were still under construction a few artists
approached us and told us they’d like to do
some work in our place so we hired them.”
The artwork was unveiled on March
15, 2018, when Arcadia Bar and Kitchen
opened.
The location’s sizable square footage,
which includes a large courtyard area, serves
as a performance space for local musicians
on Thursday nights, as well as aspiring performers
on the first Friday of every month.
“We do live music every Thursday,” Alatsas
explained. “The open mic we did for the first
FOOD + DRINK
Photos by Marina Hatzopoulou