In his own words...

I was born into a stereotypical Greek family. My mother and father, who were both immigrants from Sparta, Greece, left their homeland to pursue the American dream and, after years of hard work, opened their own diner known as The K Diner.

This very busy diner was my personal playground: Other kids had GI Joe dolls and I had a spatula. They had a playground; I had a dining room. I am not complaining because my parents were wonderful and excellent providers. I truly enjoy being in the restaurant business — I have been in it all of my life. I guess the cliché is true: you can take the restaurant away from the boy, but you can’t take the boy away from the restaurant.

An excerpt from "Not Your Ordinary Cookbook":

September 30, 2000

My first day at the diner was grueling. I couldn’t find anything because we opened the day after settlement. We couldn’t afford to close and get situated. We worked from early morning to late evening selling more newspapers, magazines, and cigarettes than food. I think we sold $115.00 in food ALL DAY. I think our house specialty was scrambled eggs and grilled cheese. At the end of the day, I cried wondering how I would support a family.
The first three months, I maxed out my credit card to keep the newsstand afloat. I borrowed $1500.00 from my Aunt Dora for additional capital to purchase supplies and to start my cash drawer. My mother (God Bless her) put her home up for collateral.

Yanna and I struggled with everything. I cooked. She served food. We could barely pay rent and utilities. We even disconnected the cable TV to save money. I knew we needed a niche. “We are going to have to change everything in order to survive,” I thought.

The Idea

We had to reinvent our place, and the key to survival was to be unique. So I told Yanna, “No regular diner food: no liver and no chicken croquettes.
But Yanna who is usually optimistic replied, “We have to carry that. It’s what is expected of a diner.”

I totally disagreed with continuing the expected, and I know Yanna did as well, but she was pregnant and wanted to minimize any risk. Yanna knew as well as I did that there was an overabundance of sameness in the Lehigh Valley. The only difference from one diner to the next—including ours—was the menu cover.

When I saw Yanna crack a very conservative smile, I knew she agreed with me. But I also knew agreement meant a family feud. How so? Yanna is creative, but so am I. If I said, “Let’s do a Dutch omelet — eggs, meatloaf, gravy, and cheese,” she’d say, “You’re nuts.” When she’d say, “Let’s do a turkey club omelet — turkey, bacon and tomato,” I’d say, “You are crazy — who puts turkey in an omelet?”

Our battles over making the place unique were fun and creative, and it was definitely a process. After we’d decide on the ingredients for an omelet, I’d focus on presentation and name. And that’s how we came up with “not your ordinary diner.”

I still have fun making diner specials with my wife…and we still argue when we do them, but the end results are great.

The Name

The first year of operation was tough, but we made it through. Yeah, we lived in a crappy apartment, but we started to pay our bills, we turned the cable back on — and our son was born. Slowly but steadily our business began to grow. Our menu became more unique with each breakfast and lunch feature. We added televisions showing stock reports and headline news on closed captioning and surround sound jazz and lounge music. And we began to get repeat customers, who were kind enough to speak well of our place to others. We honestly have the best and most loyal customers any diner could have. Then a very close family friend said to Yanna, “Why are you still calling the place Rudy’s? It should be called Billy’s!”
Yanna agreed and the two of them started brainstorming.

After five years of work, our diner was named “Best Breakfast in the Lehigh Valley” by a popular magazine in which an undisclosed number of people voted. What an honor this was for us, since many other places were more established and bigger than ours. We were truly honored and blessed. In 2006, we were honored again as the “Best Breakfast in the Lehigh Valley.”

So now you know our story. But how do you create the Billy’s experience at home? First hang a picture of Billy on your kitchen wall, install a small TV (with headline news, no volume, and closed captioning), then add a CD player for cool jazz or lounge music. You’ll also need your significant other or great friend to help you make…and eat…these delicious omelets.

To book Billy Kounoupis to cook breakfast, lunch or dinner for your next private party - contact Lori Donovan at The Fourth Leaf Company.