Pelican is busy family’s latest venture
Published 6:37 pm Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Peter and Marilyn Limberopoulos, along with their twin daughters Johanna and Stacy, now operate three restaurants in the Puget Sound area after opening the Rusty Pelican in Edmonds on March 16. The Mukilteo couple also operate the original Rusty Pelican in Wallingford and Gyro Delight in Lynnwood. Peter moved from Greece to the United States at age 16. Both he and Marilyn have worked in the restaurant business since a young age.
Q: Why did you decide to open in Edmonds?
A: We also have Gyro Delight, which is a fast-food Greek restaurant in Lynnwood. So I was around Lynnwood, and I shop a lot in Edmonds, and I was actually thinking about opening an ice cream parlor … I figured it was going to be too much money with the permits to convert the home (I was looking at). … Just to sell ice cream, I didn’t think it was going to be feasible. I made a turn around and was driving on Fifth and saw the sign in the window, “Restaurant for Lease,” and my eyes lit up. I called my husband and said, “We have to get this place.” … All the guts were in there, and that’s the major cost of opening a restaurant. (The sellers’ real estate agent) said, ‘You know we have certain criteria. We really want someone with experience.’ I said, ‘Between my husband and I we have 80 years. Is that enough?’ … The rest is history.
We were thinking in the back of our head we would like to open another restaurant, and I’ve always loved Edmonds, so it was like a dream come true when I saw that “For Lease” sign. … We were so happy with the outcome and business has been great, and everybody’s been so nice in Edmonds.
Q: How did your friends and family react when you told them you were opening another restaurant?
A: My family thought we were crazy. They’re all in Chicago. We had a restaurant there that sat 300 people for 26 years. … My husband works 110-plus hours a week. And he has two days off: Christmas Day and New Years. … My sister said, ‘Are you crazy?’ I said, ‘No, you have to see this place to believe it. I’ve just got a really good feeling for Edmonds.’ … I didn’t even think of the economy being an issue, I just knew it was the right thing to do. … When we got Seattle (Rusty Pelican restaurant in Wallingford) it took us two years to get established. Here it took two weeks. … It’s amazing that they (city officials) put so much effort into benefiting the businesses in Edmonds. … So many towns have forgotten the small businesses, and it’s so nice to see that Edmonds has not.
Q: How has it been going juggling all your different restaurants?
A: We’re all very organized, me, my husband and the girls. We walk around like robots. We almost drive each other crazy, actually. My daughter said, ‘It feels we’re off-kilter.’ … Now we’ve got our system and we’re doing good. Everything in our restaurants is made from scratch, nothing is pre-made. … So there is a lot of prep work for all the restaurants. … The baking was kind of difficult at first for the three places. We’re doing OK. We’re seasoned veterans at this. … It’s a good tired. Especially in this economy, if you keep your head above water you’re doing well. We’ve been blessed, for sure.
Q: What personal qualities do you think are needed to excel in the restaurant business?
A: Oh god, service, service, service. … I think service is the utmost and the only thing that will keep a restaurant going. You have to have good food, of course, and you have to have a clean restaurant. But you can have those two things and poor service and you’re not going to make it. … Our servers are just amazing. I told them we’re not perfect, by no means – there’s no perfection in anything you do — but I want everyone who enters those doors to be appreciative and well taken care of. … I’m a detail person and it’s those small details that people really appreciate. In these busy times a lot of those little things are overlooked. My husband takes great pride in his cooking. …
Q: When you’re not working, how do you enjoy spending your time?
A: Pretty much we like to go out to eat, as funny as that might sound. Even being in the business as long as we have we don’t have blinders on, and we try to learn every day. So we go to other restaurants and look for things we can improve on. … And there are other nights where you sit and don’t even talk because you’re worn out from the week. We have family night, just us, and barbecue. We’re close. … We’re a family that works together.
The Rusty Pelican Cafe
WHERE: 107 Fifth Ave. N, Edmonds
PHONE: 425-582-8250
