The Kiosk, Ballina, 1960
On the short list of cafes providing an idyllic lifestyle for their proprietors was The Kiosk on the waterfront at East Ballina. From 1944 to 48 a bloke simply identified as ‘Mr Feros’ had it, probably Mick George Feros or possibly George Jim Feros, but it’s doubtful he lived on site. The Tzortopoulos family took over 10yrs later and lived on site for about 9yrs, but any interim Greeks have yet to be identified. Ditto pre 1944.
Jim Tzortopoulos arrived from Kythera via a sojourn in Piraeus in the early 1950s and worked for a few years at Kyogle before acquiring The Kiosk in 1958, the same year his wife, Garifalia, nee Coroneos, and family turned up. Garifalia was the sister of the copious Coroneos living around the region - Mrs Katina Stan Gleeson of Kyogle, Mrs Anna Peter Crethar of Lismore and Jim, Peter and Leo of all over the place.
The Kiosk was a popular spot for squillions of holidaymakers, both day-trippers and tent city residents, through the 1950s, 60s and 70s, and living on site gave the Poulos a lifestyle envied by all. Sometime in the late 1960s they acquired the Monterey café of the unconnected George and Peter Anastasios Poulos in the Ballina CBD and operated both businesses until 1973. And then for some odd reason gave it all away to retire in Canberra.
A piece of Ballina history was lost in 2001 when the Kiosk suffered severe storm damage and the Council took the opportunity to turn it into a vacant lot. The valuable site remains in limbo as Ballina, like all coastal towns growing like the clappers, becomes urbanised and kills off the old Australian beach culture (although tent city is not going down without a fight, with caravan parks becoming the new battle ground for cheap accommodation as house prices soar beyond the reach of many.)
There was still a Greek presence at East Ballina until recently, with Archie Poulos, the son of Peter Anastasios Poulos and Frosso Mentis, the daughter of Angelo and Theodora, nee Crethar, operating an Italian restaurant at Shaws Bay, about a 100yds from the old Kiosk.
[Settlement around the Richmond, a province of the Kingdom of Karavas, was certainly an interconnected family affair. Falia Poulos’s brother, Jim John Coroneos, arrived in town in 1953 and acquired the café next door to the Plaza Theatre in River Street. He had first landed with his brother Angelo pre WW1 and been in partnership with Peter Conomos at Kyogle from the early 1920s until selling up in 1931 and returning to Karavas to establish an olive oil making factory and woo the Greek American, Maria Mentis, the sister of Nick Con Mentis of Tenterfield. Post WW2 he decided to introduce Maria to surf board riding and came back to settle at Ballina after another stint in Kyogle. Unfortunately, he died shortly afterwards, in early 1957, whereupon Maria and children figured the surfing mecca of Ballina was a con job and sold out to Jim’s brothers, Peter and Leo Coroneos, to return to the holy waters of Karavas. Jim lies with Angelo at Casino, where the latter had died in 1924.
Coroneos continuity lasted into the 1980s. Peter and Leo passed the café to their niece, Mary Black, the daughter of Anna Peter Crethar, who passed it to her sister, Matina, who passed it to her son, Peter Coronakes, who finally broke the connection when he returned to Lismore to become a property tycoon.]
(Psst: A bloke simply identified as ‘S. Coroneo’ converted the Lismore Federal Hall into a cinema in early 1927. Does anyone know anything about him?)
