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Zorba's Nightclub In Tarpon Reinvents Itself

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By Mark  Schantz | The Suncoast News

Published: December 6, 2008

A Sponge Docks landmark, Zorba's, a nightclub and taverna, is back in the spotlight. A new owner is trying to resurrect the style and glamour that made Zorba's and its belly dancers popular decades ago.

Last December Kominos Hatziliaris, a local resident, bought the taverna with the idea of restoring Zorba's to its original grandeur and fame.

Situated on Athens Street, an area of the Sponge Docks along which locals gather, Zorba's is as famous a local landmark as the now-closed Louis Pappas Riverside Restaurant once was, said Yanni Stathakis, Zorba's manager.

The nightclub has been remodeled to look as it did in its heyday, when Zorba's was filled with locals enjoying nightlife at the Sponge Docks.

In the last few years, Zorba's had become more of a bar than a nightclub, Stathakis said. During the past year, however, boards were removed from windows and the main dinning room and the kitchen received a $200,000 makeover.

It's now a place where you can feel safe bringing your wife, daughter and whole family for an evening of entertainment, Stathakis said.

The nightclub offers a full menu of Greek delicacies, from finger foods to full dinners, fine wines and liquor, with a 6 - 9 p.m. happy hour.

Zorba's is open as a Greek nightclub from Thursday to Sunday nights from 5 p.m. until 2 a.m.

With 150 seats, a dance floor and stage lighting to set a colorful mood, Zorba's is a place to come for three or four hours, Stathakis said. Patrons will feel like they are in a real bouzoukia, he said.

Nightclubs in Greece that feature music are often called bouzoukia.

It is also the perfect place for banquets, private parties and corporate parties, he added.

A mural featuring actor Anthony Quinn, the star of the 1964 film "Zorba the Greek," still serves as the backdrop for the stage. Before it was renamed Zorba's, the 80-year-old Greek nightclub was known as Port Said, Stathakis said.

The club's famed belly dancers, who entertain the crowds during dinner shows, are to Tarpon Springs as mermaids are to Weeki Wachee, the Hernando County attraction.

Entertainment is also provided by Zorba's house bouzouki band and D.J. Astatos.

The club, Stathakis said, has been revamped to cater to second- and third-generation Greek-Americans and all the tourists who come to the Sponge Docks. They still want to hear some of the old music and be entertained in the old tradition, but with a more contemporary flair, he said.

Our motto is "the old tradition and new experiences," the manager said.

Starting Dec. 9, Tuesday nights will focus on Latin music, with Wednesday nights featuring the Top-40's Group Espree De Kor. Plans are to open for lunch after New Years, Stathakis said.

Reservations are already being taken for Zorba's 2009 New Years Eve Party. The $45-per-person cost will include a prime rib dinner.

For information or reservations call 727-934-8803.

Mark Schantz can be reached at 727-815-1075 or mschantz@suncoastnews.com.

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