Page 28 - Valley Table - Winter 2023/2024

EMPIRE
After a couple of years, the brothers decided it was time to do things their way. They’d either find success in the U.S. or head back home, where the rest of the family and their farm were still anchored.
OF THE
The four brothers: Peter and George at left, Billy and Nick on the right.
They began buying and building restaurants, drifting from Connecticut into the HV. “We love the land here,” says Peter. “When people visit
SONS
Take four siblings from Greece, one secret pizza recipe, and an infinite work ethic, and what do you get? A robust family business that anchors the Hudson Valley with food and fun. BY JANET SIROTO
The four original Stefanopoulos brothers— Billy, George, Nick,
and Peter—and four
of their children run an empire that’s become a touchstone in so many Valleyites’ lives. There are nine Pizza Inns (eight in the Hudson Valley, plus one outlier in Great Barrington), which have served 80 million customers and counting. There’s also Hotel Caravana, a beloved drive-in and airstream hotel in Amenia, the gracious Millerton Inn, a salad dressing company, and a soon-to-open eatery in Millbrook.
Coming to America
This dynasty, however, was born of hard times when the brothers were young men in southern Greece. As John Stefanopoulos (son of Billy) tells it, the siblings’ father got badly scammed. Reeling from this setback, the quartet set off to America to find their fortune.
Settling first in Connecticut, they grabbed whatever jobs they could. The food industry was hospitable to recent Greek immigrants, and they did everything from working in a cheese shop to driving an ice-cream truck.
26 TheValleyTable | December2023-February2024
You can purchase Four Brothers’ famous Greek dressing to jazz up salads at home.
from Greece, they expect a crowded city. Then they see the Hudson Valley, and they get it. They say, ‘You live in heaven on earth!’”
In Pursuit of Pizza
The brothers had a knack for knowing when and where to open restaurants. One of the eateries they purchased was a pizza shop,
and soon they were off and running. The owner offered to stay on for a bit and teach them the intricacies
of pizza dough, but the brothers didn’t need any guidance. “We have a secret recipe, so we can’t tell you everything,” says Nick with a laugh, “but we do have a special process for the way we handle our dough, and it
PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE STEFANOPOULOS FAMILY/RESPECTIVE BUSINESSES