“Magemenos Avlos (=enchanted flute) is an endless story, a hot spot from which interesting and major personalities have passed, and in that sense, time was good with it.”
Simple, kind and proud.
Mr Dimitris Theofilou, the owner of the historical restaurant “Magemenos Avlos”, gave us an incredible interview and traveled us decades ago, from the first days of the restaurant’s operation and the time when Manos Hadjidakis visited him and till present.
Mr Theofilou, let me ask a simple question so that people can learn a little bit about this business, how it started and how it took its name.
Magemenos Avlos opened in 1960-1961 as a delivery station for the products of Pavlidis chocolate industry, as a candy station indeed. However, the mastermind and instigator of the idea used to travel a lot in Europe back then, and had the idea to give it a color from Austria. So we thought of “enchanted flute” instead of “magic flute” that would directly refer to Mozart’s opera.
We gave the place that name, so that Mozart’s family wouldn’t ask for copyright! I’m just kidding of course. And there, like relevance, arose the fondue, which was common food in central Europe in 1960-1961, but totally unknown to the Athenians. And we started with chocolates and sweets, served around the fondue.
In the beginning it was just for close friends. But soon regular people replaced the sweet buyers to such an extent, that in the end, candies were sold at the edge of the store, while crowds would sit at the tables and enjoy the fondue, our pizza (this was the first place serving pizza in Greece) and of course dozens of other tasty dishes that refered briefly in Central Europe.
55 years of continuous presence in the field of catering. I would like you to make a flash back throughout this route and tell us some unforgettable points, the ones that marked the history of this restaurant.
The truth is that the story of this place has been really interesting. Time was good with us, I dare to say. Many important personalities, famous in Greece, have passed from Magemenos Avlos. For talented Mr Manos Hadjidakis, this place was like second home. This is where he used to drink his morning coffee and he would end his day with one of our desserts. Around him, a group of significant people was formed, all of which with great fame in the fields of letters and arts, people who wrote history in the second half of the last century and we still think of when looking back in the past.
Late Gatsos wrote some lyrics here, but also composers made their debut, before entering into the pantheon of the successful artists, like Demos Moutsis for instance. Another composer who started his course here is Nikos Kypourgos, Dimitris Iatropoulos who wrote incredible poems, and many many other personalities who loved this place and used to come on frequent basis: Minotis, Katrakis, Dimitris Horn, Aliki Vougiouklaki, Tzeni Karezi with her husband Costas Kazakos, Anna Fonsou, Tzeni Vanou, Spanos, Mimis Plessas, Chatzinasios and other.
You mentioned huge Manos Hadjidakis, the man who developed an enviable route as composer, scholar and poet. Which is you most vivid memory about him?
I’ll tell you a cute scene, starring Manos Hadjidakis. He once had much appetite for discussion. At 4 o’clock in the morning, one of our greatest waiters, Mr Gregoris, approached him and asked if he would have a problem with them letting him alone to close the store and lock, as everyone was tired and would leave. And Manos replied, “No problem guys, go on, I will close the restaurant and I will lock!”
When waiters came back at 9 in the morning to prepare the store for opening, they found Manos sleeping on an armchair, just by the door. And when they hit the window, he woke up and said: “Oh you’re finally here. I lost the keys, so I couldn’t leave. I waited for you to come.”
Except for Manos Hadjidakis, many others have occasionally visited the restaurant. Tell us an incident that’s been engraved in your memory.
I’ll tell you an incident from the past, when there was still kingdom in Greece. Konstantinos, who was the successor king back then, had come to the restaurant on foot, but shorty after he did, a torrential rain began. We used to have an Austin, a small van for our products’ transfer, and we offered a ride. “Your Highness, would you accept us to take you home with the van, since we have no other means?” He said yes, but the van had such a strong smell from onions and garlics that really embarrassed us! It was cute, though.
Next time he visited us, we mentioned how sorry we were about that incident and he was so polite that he answered: “Don’t mention it, it was the most delicious route I have ever experienced!” Konstantinos was a common client. He even came here with the cinema star Aliki Vougiouklaki, the only date of these two that was ever recorded.
These were really nice stories… I would like to close this interview with you telling us a little bit about the cuisine here. How would you describe it and what are the most representative dishes of Magemenos Avlos?
Our cuisine began with beautiful ideas, as an inspired housewife would cook recipes to please her family, flavored of course with a sense of Europe. Along the way, more recipes enriched the menu, all of which would remind of what we eat from our mother and grandmother.
We serve some special dishes, like the “pikata” (we have been serving it for 55 years actually), delicious parmesan cheese croquettes and dozens of similar delicacies. We cook Greek and Mediterranean dishes, offering amazing “giouvetsi”, fricassee, wine sauce recipes etc. I would call our cuisine traditional, tasteful, and with the appearance concerning us a lot.
A short CV for Mr Dimitris Theofilou
I basically started as a hotelier, making my first tourist steps in my father’s camp in Epidaurus, back in the ‘50s. Then I followed hotel studies and I was lucky enough to be promoted with a scholarship in Switzerland, where I had the chance to gain more knowledge and began to work as a hotel manager and then as a businessman.
After that I dealt with restaurants. As a hotelier and with Stadium Hotel being in my neighborhood, I used to eat there, and I met the very great George Polichronis. When he retired, we took the reins, and we have been working here the last quarter of the century.
I have completed almost half of a century of professional activities, since my first shop, which I opened in 1968 in Plaka. Can you realize how many things we have experienced through this path? Approximately 6.500 employees have passed from our business, and still... not a single dismissal. I never fired anyone. This is for me a huge personal success, and I’m very proud!