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News Article - Full Text Back to Current News
Andrew M. Seder, Wilkes-Barre Times Leader
When she was just a teenager working at a Golden Corral in Raleigh, N.C., a manager critiqued Rebecca Karas and told her she lacked initiative. Motivated by that assessment, which she now does not dispute, she strove to change. If that former boss could see the lines forming each weekday at Karas’ new cafe on Public Square, he’d likely issue an addendum to his review. The Greek Connection opened in Wilkes-Barre earlier this month in what used to be D’Antonio’s and before that Bagel & Coffee Connection. Coffee, doughnuts, soups, sandwiches, salads and breakfast fare are on the menu, and almost all of the food items are homemade. “If you want to do it the right way, you do it yourself,” said Karas, 42, of Plymouth. She’s learned the art of business thanks to stints working at eateries including Eddie’s Place in Plains Township and Circles on the Square in Wilkes-Barre. She learned her accounting sense doing billing work at a chiropractor’s office in Plymouth. The mother of two teenage daughters is a jack-of-all-trades at the new business. She takes orders, makes deliveries, prepares, bakes and serves the food. She puts in more than 80 hours a week along with her husband, John, arriving most mornings when it’s still dark and going home most nights after the sun has set. Daughters Alexis, 16, and Amanda, 13, are at the place after school most days, making it truly a family business. John, 49, uses the cooking skills he learned from his Greek immigrant father 39 years ago while growing up in Philadelphia. The restaurant is the culmination of years of dreaming that started even before the two met at an area diner. It was a meeting that almost didn’t happen. John was working as a short-order cook at Eddie’s Place in January 2001, and had put in his two-week notice. A week later, Rebecca was hired as a waitress. It was love at first sight, John said. He rescinded his resignation in short order and the two started seeing each other. They worked together for three years before being married Oct. 3, 2004. Throughout the past six years the two spoke of opening their own eatery, something Rebecca has thought about for even longer. Then last summer, the two struck an agreement with the owner of the Curry’s Donuts chain to operate the North Main Street location in Wilkes-Barre. The Karases would try to get funding to buy half the business and would sell some of John’s homemade soups, salads, sandwiches and Greek specialties in addition to Curry’s doughnuts and coffee. They came on board Sept. 1, and business was brisk but space was cramped. As they tried to get funding to buy into the business, the two sides “could not come to a mutual understanding, so we decided to go our own way,” Rebecca said. They left Curry’s on Feb. 1 but already had another plan on the drawing board. Her brief exposure to the downtown customer base and what they liked led her to believe their business model could work on Public Square. The Karases signed a lease with RAM Buildings, based in Bloomsburg, for the old D’Antonio’s location and then signed a deal with Krispy Kreme Doughnuts to be the lone carrier in the city. They signed on with Ellis Coffee, too. When the business opened May 4, a line went out the door and some people waited for nearly 45 minutes for their order. The regulars who had frequented the North Main Street doughnut shop had been waiting for the opening for three months and the extra 45 minutes didn’t deter them. Hundreds made sure to support the Karases that day. Business was even better that they had anticipated. With only three employees on staff, they quickly began hiring more. Now they have 12 on the payroll. “It just proves to me that we made the right decision,” Rebecca said of continuing her quest to run a business. “It’s a dream come true.” Stacy LaCoe, of Hanover Township, works as a sales representative at neighboring Geisinger Health System. She recalled Rebecca dropping off menus last year after they began operating at Curry’s. She said many employees made the Karases’ food part of their regular lunch rotation and credits Rebecca’s marketing skills as helping to grow the business. Even after the move, those skills are apparent. Rebecca made her way around the Fine Arts Fiesta on Public Square on Thursday passing out menus and mingling with potential customers. There’s competition on all sides of the Square – another Curry’s on one side, Dunkin Donuts on another, and well-established sandwich shop Circles on the Square on another – but Rebecca believes there are plenty of customers for all to succeed. She believes what Greek Connection is offering is what people want. “We do it all ourselves, like you want it made at home,” she said. She tinkers with recipes and lets customers determine if they become a menu item or not. And for the Karases, the customers come first. “I went with the lowest prices because I felt that right now times are hard. We’re not trying to make a million dollars. We’re trying to make a living.” Employees at the Geisinger office about 50 feet from the Greek Connection’s door have been loyal customers and laud the business. Receptionist Anne Carmody, of West Pittston, first fell in love with the homemade foods and the Karases’ friendliness and prices when they operated the North Main Street Curry’s. When she heard they were leaving that location she was upset, but when she found out they were opening up shop within earshot of her desk she was thrilled. “They’re so nice and so accommodating. We just keep coming back. I never met anybody like them,” said Carmody, who orders food from the eatery at least once a day. “We’re fortunate to have something like that in downtown Wilkes-Barre.” |
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