OSHTEMO, MI – Greek-American Themi Corakis was featured in MI Live for continuing his family’s restaurant legacy. “The school bus for Chime Elementary used to drop a 7-year-old Themi Corakis out front of a restaurant on Stadium Drive every day after school let out,” MI Live reported, adding that “he’d hop off the steps with his sister and make his way across the street, his head tilted up at the sign across from him: Ted and Marie’s Colonial Inn, but to Themi, Ted and Marie were just mom and dad.”

“I would do dishes, clean tables or whatever,” Corakis told MI Live. “Back then, you did stuff like that.”

“From age 7 on, each day Corakis learned the restaurant business from his parents who moved from Greece to follow this dream,” MI Live reported, noting that “in the early 1970s, Corakis’ parents landed in Kalamazoo, after spending time in London, Ontario.”

“His father, Ted, spent the next few years working in different restaurants until the pair decided to buy their own,” MI Live reported, adding that “in 1973, they purchased The Colonial Inn and made it their own.”

“They were very proud of it,” Corakis told MI Live. “They bought Ted and Marie’s.”

“What was now Ted and Marie’s Colonial Inn had been a restaurant in the same spot at 6416 Stadium Drive since the 1940s,” MI Live reported, noting that “at 85, Marie still visits to cut potatoes in the back.”

“She walks past the spatula she’s used for over 50 years, that is now framed on the wall, to a table in the back filled with friends –– regulars of the restaurant –– and greets them with a heavy Greek accent and hugs, as she has for decades,” MI Live reported, adding that “Ted passed away 18 years ago” and “next to Marie’s spatula is a photo of Ted, standing proud on mountainous terrain on a visit to Greece.”

“In the back entrance of the building a painting of the original restaurant hangs, inscribed with Ted’s name –– it was a painting he made for Marie in 1989,” MI Live reported, noting that “for the past 51 years Ted and Marie’s has served the Kalamazoo community with fresh ‘made-to-order’ breakfast. Eventually, Corakis and his wife Shelly took over.”

“If you’re in a rush, you might want to go to McDonald’s, but if you’re looking for a meal that is actually going to be prepared for you, this is the place to be,” Shelly Corakis told MI Live.

“When COVID-19 shut down the nation in 2020, the couple questioned whether or not a restaurant that serves breakfast could survive, but Corakis refused to do take-out,” MI Live reported, adding that “he didn’t want to sacrifice on quality, so instead the restaurant took the time to remodel.”

“The new ceiling, paint and flooring brought the restaurant into the 2020s, without forgetting the roots of what make it special: A friendly atmosphere with quality ‘home cooking,’” MI Live reported.

“We’re starting to see a lot of young families come in because our prices are so reasonable,” Shelly Corakis told MI Live.

“Most meals at Ted and Marie’s are under $10,” MI Live reported, noting that “an order of bacon, potatoes, eggs, and toast is less than $8 at the restaurant.”

Ted & Marie’s Colonial Inn Restaurant, located at 6416 Stadium Drive in Oshtemo, MI, is open Monday through Saturday, 6 AM-3 PM, closed on Sundays.