Constantine Giavos: Stella's, Little Nickel and more!

Eat It, Virginia!

Constantine Giavos comes from Richmond restaurant royalty. The son of Katrina and Johnny Giavos, Constantine's grandmother is Stella — yes that Stella — the namesake and inspiration behind his family's most well-known restaurant.

Serving as creative director for his family's impressive portfolio of restaurants, it was the re-launch of Stella's that launched Constantine into the family business.

"I started with the relaunch of Stella's in 2011. That's when I really got involved," Giavos, who studied at the Parsons School of Design in New York said. "Continental was the second one. It kind of steamrolled from there."

While his parents and others handle what comes out of the kitchen at Giavos-family restaurants such as the aforementioned Stella's, Continental (2x), plus Little Nickel, Sidewalk Cafe, Kuba Kuba (2x), Galley, and Perly's, Constantine handles what you experience upon entering the space.

He sets the tone by, among other things, designing each restaurant's decor, choosing the dishes and drinkware, settling on menu font types, and curating the playlists that send music into guests' ears while hearty portions fill their bellies.

Learn all about Constantine, his design philosophies, and his music career on this episode of Eat It, Virginia!

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