The inspiration, he says, came from the annual Greek Easter celebration Papadopoulos hosts, which is attended by up to 200 people. But in addition to the Greek dishes his friends and family love, Papadopoulos wanted to introduce some Mediterranean flavors and tastes.
“About six years ago, I put the menu together and started trying to create the concept,” he says. “It was hard to get it right. I wanted to make sure I had to do it the way I wanted to do it. My mother died during this time, so that didn’t help. But it evolved from Greek Easter, celebrating flavor and family, which is our motto.”
In fact, “Celebrate Flavor & Family” is displayed in a bright neon sign above Karv’s open kitchen. The colorful, inviting dining space was designed by Papadopoulos’ wife, Niki, a partner at Mark Williams Design in Atlanta.
“I wanted to make sure of three things,” Papadopoulos says. “Of course, the quality of the food was very important. Scalability was very important because I wanted to make sure we could open another one at some point. The third thing was I wanted to make sure the cooking appliances were unique to us.”
To that end, Papadopoulos says he steered clear of the kind of vertical grill most often associated with gyroscopes and “typical Greek places. Instead, Karv has a professional gas Brazilian grill with a water bath under the cooking area. The result is meat that’s both even and moist.
But for Papadopoulos, Greek pita bread is also at the top of the list. “Pita bread from Greece is a game-changer for us,” he says. “It’s unlike anything you’ll ever have in the United States. If you’ve tasted it, you’ll understand why.”
Another key to the concept was working with Holler, whose background in fine dining and familiarity with Mediterranean cuisine helped with recipe development.
“I really fell in love with Eclipse di Luna because I come from gourmet and French cooking with semifreddo and heavy cream sauces, but Spanish food is something I really like to eat,” Holler says. “I’ve been cooking food for 10 years, and I think that’s why the transition from there to working with Sandy.”
“It’s my baby, and Shan helped me create it,” Papadopoulos says. “I couldn’t have asked for a better partner. He’s a godsend. I don’t want to get emotional about it, but it’s a dream come true for me. It’s something I’m very passionate about.”
