They were a quintessential part of Australian life for decades, then quietly faded away. But UQ academic Toni Risson is not letting the phenomenon that was the Greek cafe be forgotten.
Ms Risson, a PhD student at the University’s Ipswich campus, recently released Aphrodite and The Mixed Grill, a chronicle of Greek cafes in Australia.
The book outlines how these Greek immigrant-operated shops combined the benefits of milk bars, rest stops and diners and brought American treats such as ice-cream sodas and sundaes to Australian towns from the turn of the 20th century to the 1970s.
Ms Risson said Greek cafes had been part of the Australian landscape as a place to meet after going to the pictures, for travellers to stop on long journeys or families to visit while window shopping in the days before television.
Towns such as Ipswich had more than a dozen Greek cafes when the trend was at its peak.
“They were just everywhere; they were like McDonald’s,” she said.
“Apart from the face behind the counter, and sometimes the name (of the establishment), nothing else was Greek; they served milkshakes, toasted sandwiches, the mixed grill, simple British-Australian food.”
While the food was familiar, the Greek faces and accents were not, and Ms Risson said many cafe proprietors bore the brunt of racism in a way other ethnic groups did not.
“They were at the forefront of multicultural Australia, the Greeks were at the centre of the business district, they were at the centre of people’s lives,” she said.
Ultimately, Greek cafes began to close down in the 60s and 70s due mostly to the rise of television, better cars and American fast food outlets.
According to Ms Risson, few traditional Greek cafes remain in Australia; the Niagara in Gundagai and the Paragon in Katoomba are the best known.
Aphrodite and The Mixed Grill started out as an 8000-word dissertation for a one-semester subject Ms Risson took in 2005. She said once she began to learn about the Greek immigrants who ran the cafes, she realised the tale needed a book, not an essay.
“It’s just been a privilege for me to meet these people and be trusted with their stories,” Ms Risson said.
An exhibition of the photos in Aphrodite and The Mixed Grill, called Greek Cafes in Ipswich, opens at Ipswich Art Gallery on August 11, coinciding with the Ipswich launch of the book.
Media: Ms Risson on 0439 664 291 or Tegan Taylor at UQ Communications (07 3365 2339)
