TELL A BETTER STORY – NUTS ABOUT YOU

AT the Nut Deli everybody knows your name… if they like you, that is.

Run by the Kizi family on the corner of Kembla and George Streets, the deli feels more like a family kitchen than a café.

Mum Dolores, Dad Chris and son Lee run the joint with the help of Pauline and Linda, who are like family though not related.

Walking into the café on a Friday around 7:15 is a cacophony of sounds. 

First, the motion sensor sounds out a loud “ding-dong” as you walk in, the coffee machine is hissing and blowing steam, and there is a whole lot of chatter. 

The air breathes fresh coffee, and the morning loyals Zach, Frank and Steve are having a laugh, and more often than not taking the piss out of Chris, the owner.

Zach has been coming to the café every day for three years, Frank has a long history with the Kizis going back to when they were in real estate, and Steve… he just bought a donkey off

my boss (Becci at the Yoga Hive).

I started going to the Nut Deli because zero waste shopping is important to me, and I was able to re-use my glass containers for olives, nuts, cheese and bulk whole foods. 

I soon realised that Lee is the best barista of the family, and knows exactly how I like my long blacks and espressos.

But mostly, it’s the wholesome vibe of the place. Being greeted by name, and welcomed in like you are part of the family.

The Nut Deli started out as a Nut Shop at the Wollongong Markets back in 1953 by Chris’ dad, Emilios. Chris was about 12 at the time. Chris’ sister Helen Stylianou worked in the family shop and inherited the business when Dad got older.

Chris and his sister, who is 14 years older than him, are really close, and he considers her husband, Kerry, one of his greatest teachers and confidantes.

“My father was really old so Kerry brought me up. He was my leading light in every way. He married my sister when I was four or five. Still to the hour I ring him up. I see him all the

time,” says Chris. 

Prior to buying the deli off his sister when she retired, Chris and his wife Dolores ran a real estate business for 15 years. Running the café was a welcome change for the couple.

“I just hated it,” says Chris. “[Real estate] was all smoke and mirrors.”

Chris is Greek Cypriot, a quick-talker who laughs easily.

Dolores is of Spanish descent, and like the locals, she too falls prey to Chris’ flirtatious mockery.

When I ask how they met, Chris says:
“She stalked me for about six months.”
“I did not,” says Dolores.
“Oh, was it eight months?”

The couple met through family friends and have two boys, Lee (24) and Jordan (19).

Jordan is a carpenter, and Lee works in the shop.

Lee is a lovely balance between the calm warmth of his Mum Dolores and the cheeky vivaciousness of his Dad Chris.

He has the gift of the gab, and enjoys chatting with all the regulars in the shop.

When I ask him how he remembers everyone’s names he says:

“I have a good memory… only for people I like.”

Photo1: The Kizi family: Chris, Lee and Dolores.

Photo 2: Chris, Lee and Dolores Kizi.

Photo 3: Chris’ Uncle, Aunty (Emilios’ sister), brother-in-law Kerry, sister Helen,

Chris’ Dad Emilios, Mum, first cousin and his wife, Chris as a little boy (at the front).

Photo 4: Local Deli Nutcases: Zack, Alex, Greg and Chris.