Opa Opa: New Myrtle Beach restaurant to offer Greek food and freshly baked treats
Liljana ‘Lily’ Parastatidis and her husband, Nick, have tried to retire a couple times.
The first time was in New Jersey a few years ago after Lily left the restaurant business. But they soon opened a jewelry store that they operated for three years.
The coronavirus pandemic curtailed that business, so they moved to Barefoot Resort in North Myrtle Beach last May for their second retirement attempt.
“We retired for a year or so and it didn’t work out for us,” Lily said. “We’ve been working since we were kids, since we were 12 years old when we stepped in this country. We can’t just sit, we have to do something, and this was the best thing. . . . This is my trade anyway. I’ve been doing it my entire life.”
They’ve returned to the business they know best, and their Greek heritage.
Lily plans to open Opa Opa Taverna, a fast food Greek restaurant and bakery, on Monday, Aug. 23, in the Village Shops at Grande Dunes in Myrtle Beach. It’s in the former location of a Chipotle.
She chose the name Opa Opa because she wants the atmosphere in the restaurant to be festive for customers and employees. Traditional Greek music will be playing and the menu is called “My Big Fat Greek Menu.”
“Everybody’s familiar with that word [Opa] and we didn’t want to put a bunch of Greek names. You know, go wild and be happy, that’s the idea,” said Lily, who grew up in New York and spent 40 years in New Jersey, where she managed for 17 years the fine-dining Sir John’s Restaurant & Banquet Hall.
Opa Opa will open at 9 a.m. for baked breakfast items including pastries and Greek pies such as spinach, feta cheese, meat and leek pies, and lunch and dinner will be served between 11 a.m. and about 9 p.m. Hours may be adjusted if demand warrants. The restaurant will have indoor and outdoor seating.
Authentic Greek and freshly baked goods quickly
Customers will be served a meal from buffet-style metal food warmers and coolers that will include chicken, vegetable, and beef and lamb gyros; pork and chicken shish kabobs; sliced prime rib sandwiches; Italian sausages; and Greek and traditional burgers
Several salad options can be customized with bases of beet, cabbage, spinach and lettuce, and side items include potato salad, macaroni salad, roasted lemon potatoes and Kalamata olives. There is also a kids menu, and a host of baked items available for dessert.
The dips and sauces available include skordalia (mashed potatoes and garlic), taramasalata (Greek caviar dip), tirokafteri (spicy pepper and feta dip) and either yogurt- or mayonnaise-based tzatziki.
Lily’s friend Theo Korosidis is the baker. He has been a baker and restaurateur for four decades and for many years he operated a restaurant in New Jersey that provided baked goods to other eateries.
Baked goodies at Opa Opa include the Sideris cheesecake — carrying Theo’s nickname — fruit pies, breads, cookies, specialty cakes and Greek pastries including baklava, bougatsa, tiropita and spanakopita.
Wine and beer by the glass and bottle will be available when the licensing process is complete, and many products will be available for purchase in larger quantities such as bottles of Kalamata olive oll, Italian olive oil, Greek wines, etc. will be for sale.
Opa Opa will cater for weddings and other events.
The business will be largely a family affair, as Theo’s wife will work there, as will Lily and Nick, their two daughters and a grandchild while she seeks more employees.
Rather than consider a third retirement attempt, Lily hopes to turn Opa Opa into a franchised business.
This story was originally published August 15, 2021 at 9:00 AM.
