George Alexander Detsios, a beloved Kansas City restaurateur died Thursday at Shawnee Mission Hospital. He was 84. A friend, Allison James, said the cause of death was heart failure.
He was loved by many in Kansas City and known for his Hungarian restaurant, “George’s Cheese and Sausage” on the Country Club Plaza and before that at the Crown Center in downtown Kansas City.
George was born in Nicosia, Cyprus on March 30, 1931. As a child he was evacuated to Tanzania, returning to Cyprus after the war. As a teenager he studied textile engineering in Manchester UK and then came to the US on a Fulbright scholarship and studied law at Kansas University. George served in the US Armed services as a medic during the Korean War.
George is survived by his older brother Jack Detsios and sister-in-law Cathy Detsios, his nieces Alice, Clare, Helen and nephew Mark and grand nieces Charlotte, Joanna, Holly, Suzie, Ellie and grand nephews Gareth and Callum, great grand niece Imogen and great grand nephew Alexander. All family members reside in England.
A memorial for George will be held at 5pm on May 25th in the sculpture garden at Grinder’s Pizza 417 E 18th Street, Kansas City, Missouri.
Dear Jack, Cathy, Alice, Andy, Clare, Helen, James, Mark, Shoela, Charlotte, Joanna, Holly, Suzie, Ellie, Gareth,Callum,Imogen and Alexander.
George loved you all very much. We will miss him. He was an amazing man with the biggest heart.
Love,
Allison
George was an amazingly outgoing man loved by so many in all walks of life. I will remember him most for all the great stories he told of his life as a child, as a student, as a military man, as a restuaranteur and as a man living his life through the decades. I will always remember him until the day I pass on too. I will try to tell his stories to others. RIP Dahling!
George was a good man, a ‘character’ and an asset to the community, he will be missed.
With sincere condolences,
Warren
George’s favorite book: The Greek Passion.
“He had a dream: he had gone out in pursuit of a tiny yellow bird, a canary, at the foot of a bushy tree. He was still quite a small child, so it seemed to him, when this pursuit of the bird began. The years went by. He grew, became a young man, then a grown-up man with black hair and mustache; the years kept flying and his hair had become gray, then white; he was now an old man and still he was pursuing, vainly, the little yellow bird. Defying capture, the little canary flitted from branch to branch, from flower to flower and sang as if possessed.” (429)
Hellas Georgios,
we will not forget about you.
Yanni.
[…] just learned about the recent death of George Detsios. During the mid- to late-90s when I worked at Twentieth Century Investments at 46th and Main, a few […]
George. Will. Be. Missed. Forgotten? Never. How do you forget the hint of cinnamon in a steaming pot of Chicken Paprikash or the merry look of the master leading the new initiate into the land of exotic scents? No. Thank you, George. You made many a meal oh so much, much more due to your love of life and the people with whom you spoke and shared your world. I look forward to seeing you again so that you might lead me through the sights and sounds of the next world.
George I love you and pray to see you again someday! Shaun, Erik and I love you so much and thank you for the memories!!