Olives being bottled
It all started with a Greek olive. Peter Paris and wife Lucie ‘Lucka’ (pronounced Lutzka) had taken their marinated olives to gatherings for as long as they could remember. Along with the compliments were the encouragements for the couple to start a business selling the olives made from Peter’s Greek grandmother’s recipe (with a slight modification). They usually laughed it off until that one day when Peter said, “Why not? Let’s give it a try.” Even though it was the middle of the 2020 pandemic, ‘Our Greek Market’ was born.
They began by selling the olives at the farmer’s markets. “It grew from there.” Lucka said, “People would ask how they could get the olive oil that marinated our olives, so we started selling it too. But then, the olives and oils went so well with real Greek feta cheese… we started to add that and then just built it up from there.”
The Paris’ are no strangers to entrepreneurship. Peter was a real estate developer until 2000, when he sold his business and moved to Prague, Czechoslovakia, working for Berlitz teaching English–which is how he met Lucka. The two started a business training program for executives in soft skills, management skills, team building, etc. When Peter’s mother got sick, the couple moved to the Eastern Shore.
It was what they got into next that surprised us. Peter co-founded the ‘Across the Bay 10k Chesapeake Bay Bridge Run,’ managing the event for almost a decade and attracting 25,000 participants yearly, making it the third largest 10k in the US. In 2017, they sold the event to Ironman, the sports holding company.
Fast forward to last year, when the farmer’s market version of ‘Our Greek Market’ got too big to contain all the new products the Paris’ were interested in curating. ‘Our Greek Market’ opened a brick-and-mortar food and processing place on Canvasback Drive in Easton.
This location gave the Paris’ a place to introduce all the ideas they never seem to run out of. Besides various olives, there are now several items typically used to create Greek meze (small dishes/appetizers): olives, fire-roasted eggplant, feta, etc., different types of olive oil, multiple blends of balsamic, and, of course, Greek cheeses. As much as possible, they are sourcing everything in large quantities from Greece and mixing, cutting, and vacuum sealing the produce in-house.
“We’re just enthusiastic about good food, about Greek food in particular, and we love to share that enthusiasm with other people who walk in here,” says Lucka. But this love runs deeper than just personal taste. Lucka, who was raised in Europe, and Peter, who comes from a big Greek family, understand the value of fresh, natural ingredients. Which is why they’re big believers in supporting the local farmers. Said Peter: “We’re not here to compete with anyone local. We just bring in high-quality imported products to complement what’s already here.” Added Lucka, “I have a very good feeling about buying my produce from our local farmers. They are important. We need them, and we love supporting them.”
Education is essential to the experience at ‘Our Greek Market.’ “When you buy here, you will also learn about what you’re buying and where it’s coming from,” says Peter. They encourage customers to sample anything and everything in the store. They also host open house events on the second Thursday of each month, when they put out samples of most of their products.
Recently, they’ve also begun offering Greek wines for sampling and purchase. “You don’t hear about Greek wines because I don’t think they have a strong marketing behind them,” Lucka said.” She was inspired to research the Greek wines and wineries, and what she discovered surprised her. “They are high quality and quite good. They have been well received,” she said.
It’s refreshing to hear the Paris’ enthusiasm about what they carry in their store. “I’m a fan of Greek cheeses,” said Peter. “The marinated olives and the balsamic are something I really enjoy. I grew up eating roasted eggplant spread, and you can’t get it anywhere. So we’re making it here, along with another favorite of mine, the roasted red pepper feta spread.” Lucka mentioned her favorites, which, along with the marinated olives, included yogurt, halloumi cheese (cut and sautéed on both sides until it’s crunchy), and, of course, the Greek wines. Their own line of spanakopita and other products are being developed with Greek chef consultants.
Regarding future plans, Lucks and Peter would eventually like to open a Greek gourmet wine bar in a touristy area with more foot traffic. “We’ll serve small plates, not restaurant type of stuff. It will be a place you could come in and have a variety of Greek appetizers, cheeses, olives, spreads with pita bread, Greek desserts, and possibly a couple of glasses of wine. We would continue manufacturing here in this place but have a little wine bar elsewhere,” said Peter.
But in the meantime, you’ll find them offering enthusiasm and lots of samples, introducing guests to Greek food, one tasty bite at a time.
Our Greek Market: 9523 Canvasback Dr, Suite 101, Easton, MD 21601
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