Bob Bell has been coming to the Port Byron Diner for four years. He thinks.
Angela Kershner / The Citizen
Jim Pardee, a patron for more than ten years, reads a newspaper as waitress Tammy Hackett passes by behind the counter.
Jim Pardee, a patron for more than ten years, reads a newspaper as waitress Tammy Hackett passes by behind the counter.
“No, seven at least,” says Athanasios “Tom” Gotsis one of the diner's three co-owners.
“You were here when I started coming,” says nearby diner George Nemo.
“Maybe it has been seven; I guess I'm getting old,” Bell says with a slight smile. He looks down at his menu to make a selection.
“He's one of my best friends,” Bell says of Gotsis.
The friendly rapport Gotsis shares with Bell and Nemo is common with many of the customers he has regularly served at the diner since purchasing it with his brothers, John and Sam Gotsis, 17 years ago. Since then Gotsis, 45, has endeared himself to eaters from Port Byron and the surrounding areas.
“It's a small town so everyone here knows each other,” Bell said.
Gotsis, who also co-owns Kosta's Restaurant in Auburn with his brothers, journeyed to America from Athens, Greece in 1976. He spent several years as a baker at Di Lauro's Bakery in Syracuse before buying the Port Byron Diner, once a gas station, with his brothers. When they did, Gotsis had no plans to continue making confections in the diner's kitchen.
“I got sick of baking, it's tough,” Gotsis said.
Instead Gotsis has dedicated himself to every facet of running the diner so as to provide a welcome environment for his patrons.
“If I have to wait, I wait; if I have to wash dishes I'll do that or mop the floor ... I'll do that too,” Athanasios said.
Athanasios does the most multi-tasking on weekends, particularly Friday nights and Sunday mornings, when the diner draws the heaviest crowds from an area stretching from Savannah to Auburn. In his spare moments he sits down with diners to discuss what's going on in their lives. The diners cherish this comfortable dynamic.
“I like to come just before dinner time, when it's not so busy and I can talk with the people,” said Ellen Anderson, who has taken a seat at the Port Byron Diner two to three times a week for 20 years. She comes from Weedsport for the diner's pepper and onion and grilled cheese sandwiches.
Athanasios has placed as much importance on the food as he has on the diner's friendliness. He suggests first-time patrons try the meatloaf and scalloped potatoes. Each day also has its own homemade special, like ghoulash on Mondays and macaroni and cheese on Fridays. Each regular customer has his or her own favorite.
“The soups here are fantastic,” Nemo said.
Nemo, 64, has been coming to the Port Byron Diner from Auburn since he discovered it while passing through the town on assignment for New York Telephone eight years ago.
“Even through the high gas prices,” Nemo said, “it's a place you can always walk in and feel comfortable.”
Nemo prefers to eat the cream of broccoli soup and pigs in a blanket when he pulls his chair up to the counter.
“I've been through the menu so many times,” he said.
Bell and Nemo also share their good times at the diner with its staff, including waitress Melissa Tanner, 40.
“I love it here; it's very upbeat, and you can be yourself,” Tanner said.
Tanner, who has worked at the diner for a year and a half, prizes the bonds she builds with the people whose coffee she pours or whose BLTs she serves along the diner's long lunch counter.
“We get a lot of regulars, and I know what they drink and what they eat,” Tanner said. “I've met a lot of friends here.”
Staff writer David Wilcox can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 245 or david.wilcox@lee.net
“You were here when I started coming,” says nearby diner George Nemo.
“Maybe it has been seven; I guess I'm getting old,” Bell says with a slight smile. He looks down at his menu to make a selection.
“He's one of my best friends,” Bell says of Gotsis.
The friendly rapport Gotsis shares with Bell and Nemo is common with many of the customers he has regularly served at the diner since purchasing it with his brothers, John and Sam Gotsis, 17 years ago. Since then Gotsis, 45, has endeared himself to eaters from Port Byron and the surrounding areas.
“It's a small town so everyone here knows each other,” Bell said.
Gotsis, who also co-owns Kosta's Restaurant in Auburn with his brothers, journeyed to America from Athens, Greece in 1976. He spent several years as a baker at Di Lauro's Bakery in Syracuse before buying the Port Byron Diner, once a gas station, with his brothers. When they did, Gotsis had no plans to continue making confections in the diner's kitchen.
“I got sick of baking, it's tough,” Gotsis said.
Instead Gotsis has dedicated himself to every facet of running the diner so as to provide a welcome environment for his patrons.
“If I have to wait, I wait; if I have to wash dishes I'll do that or mop the floor ... I'll do that too,” Athanasios said.
Athanasios does the most multi-tasking on weekends, particularly Friday nights and Sunday mornings, when the diner draws the heaviest crowds from an area stretching from Savannah to Auburn. In his spare moments he sits down with diners to discuss what's going on in their lives. The diners cherish this comfortable dynamic.
“I like to come just before dinner time, when it's not so busy and I can talk with the people,” said Ellen Anderson, who has taken a seat at the Port Byron Diner two to three times a week for 20 years. She comes from Weedsport for the diner's pepper and onion and grilled cheese sandwiches.
Athanasios has placed as much importance on the food as he has on the diner's friendliness. He suggests first-time patrons try the meatloaf and scalloped potatoes. Each day also has its own homemade special, like ghoulash on Mondays and macaroni and cheese on Fridays. Each regular customer has his or her own favorite.
“The soups here are fantastic,” Nemo said.
Nemo, 64, has been coming to the Port Byron Diner from Auburn since he discovered it while passing through the town on assignment for New York Telephone eight years ago.
“Even through the high gas prices,” Nemo said, “it's a place you can always walk in and feel comfortable.”
Nemo prefers to eat the cream of broccoli soup and pigs in a blanket when he pulls his chair up to the counter.
“I've been through the menu so many times,” he said.
Bell and Nemo also share their good times at the diner with its staff, including waitress Melissa Tanner, 40.
“I love it here; it's very upbeat, and you can be yourself,” Tanner said.
Tanner, who has worked at the diner for a year and a half, prizes the bonds she builds with the people whose coffee she pours or whose BLTs she serves along the diner's long lunch counter.
“We get a lot of regulars, and I know what they drink and what they eat,” Tanner said. “I've met a lot of friends here.”
Staff writer David Wilcox can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 245 or david.wilcox@lee.net