Demetrios Tsirtsakis and his wife Joy plan to enjoy retirement from their restaurant Demetris to the fullest.

After nearly 30 years in business, Demetri’s on the Lake is now under new management.

Demetrios “Jamie” Tsirtsakis has decided to retire. He along with his wife of 30 years, Joy, are looking forward to doing whatever they want with their time.

“I just want to say thanks to all the years that people have supported me,” Tsirtsakis said. “I came 30 years ago to Dunkirk, I opened this place in 1991, I’ve been here for a long time, but it’s time to retire.”

“We want to thank all the employees that came and went, some that stuck with us all these years,” Joy added. “Thank you to our loyal customers. I ran Katerina’s upstairs and I just want to thank everybody that booked and did anything with me, everything from 20 people to 140 people, from baby showers to bridal showers, to weddings to graduations, sorority parties, firemen’s dinners, sadly funerals, we did it all and it was always a pleasure and for that I’m extremely grateful. It was an absolute joy to serve everybody for whatever occasion that they needed.”

Tsirtsakis came from a small village called Sofiko in Greece, which is near the border of Turkey. After leaving his village, he spent time in Athens during his early teen years and served in the Greek Marines for two years.

He arrived in the United States in 1975 where he became a citizen and eventually landed in Silver Creek in 1982. There he started at Lucky’s, which is where the Rite Aid parking lot now is located, and then moved on to Tom’s Restaurant where he was open 24 hours. Not long after, he came to Dunkirk and Mark’s Restaurant, where he fell in love with the waterfront.

“When I came to Mark’s and I saw the waterfront it reminded me of Greece, that’s why I bought the place,” Tsirtsakis said.

Bob Manning, who also runs the Fireside, is leasing the restaurant in a five-year agreement.