East Syracuse, N.Y. (NCC News) – If you pay a visit to Kosta’s Pizza House, you won’t just be eating lunch – you’ll witness a performance.
Owner Kostas Kousmanidis, 66, is as charismatic and energetic as they come. Step into his shop and you’ll find him talking, cooking and joking with his customers – usually all at once.
“I love what I do,” Kousmanidis said. “It’s my nature; it’s in my blood.”
Originally from Greece, Kousmanidis came to the U.S. in 1978 and opened his shop in East Syracuse nine years later. He wanted customers to know he was more than just a chef, so he became the “Doctor of Hunger” – a title that’s stuck for 39 years.
“Whoever comes to Kosta’s Pizza House never leaves hungry,” Kousmanidis said. “That’s the Doctor of Hunger.”
If you’re going to call yourself the Doctor of Hunger, you better have the food to back it up. Fortunately for Kousmanidis, his customers say the title is well-earned.
“I’ve been coming here for 35 years,” said Herman Keiling. “At one point, I probably ate here every day for lunch for five years.”
One of Kousmanidis’s most popular items on the menu is his Greek-style chicken wings. He made them from scratch right in front of me, talking me through the process all the while.
“You start with the homemade flour,” Kousmanidis said as he tossed the uncooked wings in his special, slightly spicy, flour.
Then it was time to drop the wings in the fryer and let them cook for 10 minutes. As the wings sizzled, Kousmanidis showed me his wall of fame – stacked with pictures of customers from floor to ceiling. One particularly prized possession is the signed photo from legendary Syracuse football coach Dick McPherson.
“My customers are like my family,” Kousmanidis said, “we talk about everything from hunting to fishing to sports.”
Even Syracuse University’s men’s basketball struggles make their way into conversation. “We’re broken-hearted they didn’t make the NCAAs,” he said with a chuckle.
With my wings done cooking, Kousmanidis takes them out of the fryer, douses them in some sauce and serves them up. My appointment with the Doctor of Hunger has finally arrived.
“Crispy from the outside, juicy from the inside,” Kousmanidis said as I took my first bite. “Delicious.”
I couldn’t argue with that. At 66, past the average U.S. retirement age, Kousmanidis shows no signs of slowing down.
“I feel strong,” he said. “I’m going to do this until I can’t – probably another four or five years.”
For the Doctor of Hunger, it’s never been work. “It’s a game, it’s a play, it’s happiness to do what I do,” he said.
Video Transcript
Kostas Kousmanidis: You got it buddy, come on down in about 10-15 minutes.
Eddie McCarthy: Kostas Kousmanidis has been a restaurant owner for a long time.
Kousmanidis: 39 years, 39 beautiful years.
McCarthy: Long enough he’s got his own title.
Kousmanidis: Who comes to Kosta’s Pizza House never leaves hungry. That’s the Doctor of Hunger.
McCarthy: One of the Doctor’s favorite cures for hunger? Chicken wings.
Kousmanidis: Jumbo. Delicious. You shake them up. You put them in the fryer.
McCarthy: As the wings sizzled, Kostas turned to a calzone for another customer. Someone who’s been with him since the beginning.
Herman Keiling: I’ve been coming here for 35 years, at one point I probably ate here every day for lunch for 5 years.
McCarthy: Customers like Herman are why the doctor loves his job. But to Kostas, they’re more than just customers.
Kousmanidis: They’re like my family.
McCarthy: That’s when I realized there was another ingredient in my now almost done chicken wings. Pure joy.
Kousmanidis: Yes, for me, it’s a game, it’s a play, it’s happiness.
McCarthy: Kostas douses the wings in some sauce and now they’re ready to go. Time to taste the Doctor’s cure for hunger.
Kousmanidis: What do you think of that? Crispy from the outside, juicy from the inside. Delicious.
McCarthy: 10 out of 10. Kostas said, like all his customers, I was now a part of his family. We celebrated with some fries.
Kousmanidis: Cheers
McCarthy: Cheers. In East Syracuse, Eddie McCarthy. NCC News.