The Willow Glen Resident

Photo by Skye Dunlap

Wide World: Nick Papadopoulos journeyed all over the world on a Greek merchant ship in the 1960s and says India and Japan are the countries that made the deepest impressions upon him.

High seas were the gateway to America for restaurateur

Creekside Inn owner traveled the world, but found a home here in Willow Glen

By Michelle Ku

Nick Papadopoulos lived on the seas for two years. He traveled around the world from port to port as a chef's helper on a Greek merchant ship.

Every day he helped prepare breakfast, lunch and dinner for the 30- to 40-member crew of the Agefs, a Greek cargo ship that traveled throughout the world. But even though the management of the Agefs was Greek, it never docked in Greece during the time he was aboard, Papadopoulos says.

For many people, a life on the high seas represents travel and excitement, but for Papadopoulos the merchant ship was his opportunity to come to America. Today, 30 years after he arrived in America, he's the chef and owner of the Creekside Inn at 554 W. Alma Ave. in Willow Glen.

"It was very interesting, and I enjoyed working on the ship," Papadopoulos says. "But working on the ship was the same routine every day. We had to make bread every day. You don't buy bread at a store after being out at sea for 30 days."

When Papadopoulos was a child growing up in Greece, he was fascinated with the idea of coming to the United States. He heard stories about the power America held, its opportunities, how wonderful America is and how money is available to those willing to work hard. Papadopoulos can't describe why America appealed to him so much, but it did. "It was my dream," Papadopoulos says.

A 20-year-old man with no money and family in the United States, Papadopoulos didn't have any other way to get to America.

"I couldn't come in as a tourist, especially when you're young and have no money," Papadopoulos says. "I couldn't come in as a student. I couldn't come in any other way since I didn't have any relatives or friends to petition for me."

So, in 1966, Papadopoulos signed up for a tour on the Agefs. He joined the ship in Egypt and spent the next two years of his life traveling at sea.

Out of all the countries he visited, two that stand out in his mind are India and Japan. The people of India touched him, he says.

"There are so many poor people there. If you wear a white sleeve shirt, the people come up to you, touch you and ask you to give them things. We were in Calcutta, and they were dumping dead people in the river. It was pretty bad," Papadopoulos says.

In direct contrast to the poverty in India, Japan left an indelible image because of how modern and clean it is, Papadopoulos says.

Despite the opportunities available to Papadopoulos in Greece after his commitment on the Agefs was over, he was still focused on his goal of reaching America. "When I finished my service, people in Greece offered me good jobs there, but I didn't care," Papadopoulos says. "Even if they were going to give me the best job possible, like in government, I'd say no."

Papadopoulos arrived in San Francisco in 1968. "After your work on the ship is done, you go to the shops. At night, you go back to the ship. One day I didn't go back. That's all. I never got back to the ship, and I started my life here," Papadopoulos says.

After arriving in the United States, Papadopoulos got a job as a dishwasher at a restaurant in Sunnyvale, but soon became a chef and worked at places including the Bold Knight in Sunnyvale and Monterey, Villa Felice and two other places in Los Gatos.

Now he's owned and operated the Creekside Inn for the last 15 years. Papadopoulos' specialties are steak and prime rib, and his motto is to serve a good product at a good price. "Good-quality food always comes first. If it makes a profit, fine, but the quality comes first," Papadopoulos says.

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