A Greek takeaway owner in Perth is set to open a new restaurant in the city centre next week.
Stefania Ciocionoiu, who runs Kali Kardia, will unveil Aphrodite – named after the ancient Greek goddess of beauty – in George Street on June 5.
She hopes the restaurant will allow her to showcase a wider selection of Greek food than at her takeaway.
The Greek eatery will open at the former Vandal & Co restaurant, which closed suddenly last year.
‘Traditional’ Greek restaurant to open in June
Stefania, 45, told The Courier: “When I moved to Scotland it was my dream to open a restaurant.
“I started with the takeaway, but the restaurant will have different food from all around Greece, but the takeaway is more Cretan.
“We want to have something different in Perth – nowhere else has Greek food so I want to offer something new and delicious.
“It will be a traditional Greek restaurant and, in the future, I want to bring live music from Greek people.
“But at the moment it will be nice chill Greek music.
“I really like Greek mythology and I wanted a name everyone knows; most people know who Aphrodite is.”
Stefania is originally from the Greek island of Crete and hopes her family business will benefit Perth.
She will continue to run her takeaway on County Place alongside the new restaurant.
Restaurant to offer larger Greek food option to Perth
She added: “I’ve done a lot of work inside, so it’s good to be open as soon as possible.
“We are a family business, my husband will be in front of the house and I’ll be in the kitchen.
“Hopefully, we’ll be able to offer more jobs to people in Perth too.
“In the restaurant, every day I’ll be able to offer something new and try out different things.”
The unit has been empty for around six months.
However, George Street is one of the most occupied streets in Perth with only 10% of units vacant.
You can keep up to date with the state of Perth city centre by checking out our high street tracker.
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