samos_492x3251Greece is more than 5,100 miles away from Baltimore, but with Charm City’s Greektown, you don’t need a passport to get a taste of Athens.

Greeks have been a part of the Baltimore City community for almost 120 years with over 80 years of history in the Highlandtown-Greektown region. Yet little of the city’s populace knows Greektown, other than the occasional ride down Eastern Avenue, which runs through the middle of the neighborhood.  Greek immigrants began arriving and settling in Baltimore in the 1890’s to take jobs at Bethlehem Steel and cash in on the promise of high pay with industrial employment.  These Greek immigrants, with an initial distrust of all who were not Greek due to their history of five hundred years subjection to the Turks, formed a closely-knit colony.

In its beginning, the Greektown area served as a community for incoming Greek immigrants to be around familiar faces from their mother country and acculturate at a steady and comfortably cautious pace. Now, the town is home to not only Greeks, but an ever-expanding Latino community as well as other ethnic groups such as Indians and African Americans. The self-contained and thriving community is most famous for their many Greek restaurants, bakeries and coffee houses.

Four of Baltimore’s premiere Greek restaurants are in Greektown, located near Eastern Avenue and Oldham Streets. Even without a degree in Greek philosophy or Latin, you’ll recognize their origin as their names serve as an obvious tribute to their heritage: Ikaros, The Acropolis, Zorbas and Samos Restaurant.  The authentic food is just a sampling of what the Baltimore Greek Folk Festival offers every June, an annual Greektown tradition that nourishes Baltimore City’s craving for Greek food and culture.

According to the Greektown Community Development Corporation (CDC), Greek coffee houses have been an integral characteristic of the neighborhood’s historical landscape and social personality since the beginning of its time. “The Greek coffee houses provide the exact cultural flavor that makes them the most authentic characteristic of our Greek community,” explained Executive Director of the Greektown CDC, Jason Filippou.  In Greece, men usually gather at coffee houses in the evening, after the end of a busy day to meet friends, learn the news of the village and talk about politics.  In Greece, coffee shops are located everywhere, from the center of Athens to the mountains of northern Greece and throughout the islands. Greektown’s coffee houses offer an honest taste of what it’s like to walk down a street halfway around the world.

“Greektown is one of the most unique neighborhoods in Baltimore, while it thrives with new development it still maintains its old world charm. It is quickly becoming the new destination of Baltimore’s young professional,” said Filippou.

In addition to all of the traditional restaurant and coffee house institutions in the area, Greektown is still going through a major transition to implement some stellar community renovations.

One new addition to the town is Athena Square, a Greek-inspired luxury town home development that is said to represent the domesticity and wisdom of the Greek goddess, Athena. The area of Athena Square was recently rezoned specifically to attract residential use. The Greek-themed development now features four recently raised and sold town homes, with more construction underway. “We hope the development will spark interest in our community as well as stimulate the economy in a time when home sales are at their lowest,” said Filippou.

Another major community investment for Greektown is “Streetscape”, a $7.5 million dollar Hellenic facelift that gave the neighborhood new brick pavers, lighting, crosswalks, flags and signage among other improvements. “The investment was meant to attract other major development opportunities, and it continually attracts additional investments,” said Filippou. “This large scale of development has made Greektown worth more now than it ever was before.”

With the authentic food, sincere representation of Greek social life and ongoing renovation projects, more of Baltimore is sure to learn about this area soon, if they haven’t already.  With winter fast approaching our bustling city, taking a trip to the Mediterranean will surely warm you up…just take a drive down Eastern Ave.

Bridget Marie Forney is an up and coming public relations executive and freelance writer. You can read more about Bridget on her blog, NumbersNotInvited.com or follow her on Twitter @BridgetForney.