Taso Alexiou was surprised by his customers’ reactions after he changed the color of the iconic neon sign for George’s Drive In from blue to red two years ago.
He made the change in an effort to increase the sign’s visibility, because he felt the blue blended with the sky. It remains the biggest change he’s made to the family-owned business since taking charge.
“It’s tough being the caregiver of the restaurant,” Alexiou said. “But I felt that it’s totally awesome.”
Alexiou is the son of the owners of George’s Drive In, a business that opened in 1974 on Riverside’s Magnolia Avenue. His mother, Zaharoula, managed the restaurant for three decades after his father, George, passed away from lung cancer. Now that she’s retired, Alexiou carries on the family’s legacy.
At 18, he never envisioned taking over the restaurant, he said, having spent much of his youth taking orders and moving heavy produce. Instead, Alexiou focused on a career in information technology.
“Then I retired to work for the county,” he said. “But then I had to take over the restaurant, so that didn’t last that long.”
At first, he didn’t realize how pivotal his parents’ business was to the local community — partly because he had also grown up around it. Day after day, however, customers would recognize him and reminisce about cherished memories made at the restaurant.
Still, he was unaware of its community impact until city officials held an event at the restaurant to celebrate its 50th anniversary. He said that while he was excited that his mother’s achievements would be recognized, he estimated that only 100 people would attend.
Stay up to date with the latest from The Record. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter today!
“It was like 500 people came, 1,000 people, I can’t remember exactly, but it was packed the whole day,” Alexiou said. “You realize, ‘Dude, it is cool, it is special,’ and that you have a responsibility to make sure everything’s still kept in the way that my parents always did it.”
In the coming years, Alexiou said he plans to slowly repair the restaurant and look into opening a second location.
“I want my daughters to have a legacy that most people can’t,” he said. “That’s the future I hope for them, that they can get some of the same enjoyment and pleasure that I got from it.”
George’s Drive In is open Sunday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. It is located at 9910 Magnolia Ave. in Riverside.
Dispatches from Riverside County is a semi-regular feature where The Riverside Record highlights local businesses that make Riverside County what it is. If you know a business that you think should be featured, email publisher Alicia Ramirez at Alicia.Ramirez@RiversideRecord.org.
The Riverside Record is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news outlet providing Riverside County with high-quality journalism free of charge. We’re able to do this because of the generous donations of supporters like you!