Owls in the Community: Lindy Chakalos Connects Keene to Keene State

There was a time when Timoleon “Lindy” Chakalos ’53 was up at the crack of dawn each morning. After all, there were folks to feed and guests to greet, first at the diner on Gilbo Avenue in Keene that bears his name, later at his alma mater, Keene State College, and most recently at Timoleon’s Restaurant on Main Street, where he’s been serving up a large and delectable menu of comfort food since 1985.

Chakalos and his wife Kiki cater to a diverse crowd of locals, visitors, and, of course, a large Keene State clientele who have made Timoleon’s an institution in the Monadnock region.

These days, Chakalos, a self-taught chef who majored in education at Keene Teachers College, has better working hours. He meanders into the restaurant at around 8 a.m. and stays through the lunch shift. “I’m retired, but I still work,” said the 88-year-old restaurateur with a laugh. “There’s always something to do. I do it for exercise. I’m always moving.”

While he still keeps close tabs on the kitchen and the counter, Chakalos prefers to be among the people. Working the room like so many of the politicians and celebrities that have visited his restaurant over the years, Chakalos has a warm and congenial personality that makes every guest feel like a member of the family.

“My dad is a real people person,” said Leonidas Chakalos ’94, a lawyer and one of Lindys’ three sons. “He can go from an intellectual conversation to talking to the regular guy on the street.”

When son George Chakalos ’05, a computer science major, wasn’t in class, he could be found at the restaurant. Timoleon’s has employed many Keene State students as servers and cooks, said George. “A lot of them would come back during Homecoming and give my parents a big hug,” he added.

The elder Chakalos, who grew up in Keene, didn’t take a direct route to college. Enlisting in the Navy at the end of World War II, the former two-time All-State basketball player at Keene High made stops at URI and UNH before coming home and enrolling at Keene Teachers College in 1950. An active member of Alpha Pi Tau Fraternity, Chakalos played a couple of seasons for the College basketball team before his eligibility was taken away by the NCAA after he played in a charity game against the Harlem Globetrotters.

Following in his father’s footsteps, Chakalos began a long and memorable career in the restaurant business. After working several years at Lindy’s Diner, which still stands on Gilbo Avenue, Chakalos returned to campus, running a restaurant in the College’s old student union in Rhodes Hall. In addition to dishing out hearty portions of home-cooked food, including his Greek specialties, Chakalos enjoyed chatting with students, staff, and faculty, as well as then-President Leo Redfern. “He was a great guy,” said Chakalos. “We became good friends and he would always come down and see me.”

After working at Keene State for 17 years, Chakalos moved back up Main Street, opening up Timoleon’s in 1985. It’s not uncommon for former Keene State students to drop by and renew acquaintances. “They always drop in to say hello,” he said. “I knew them as kids and now they’re all grown up with families.”

Timoleon’s still has a special appeal to current Keene State students. “You can tell when it’s parent’s weekend or when the kids come back to school. They love to come over here,” he said. “We try to make it a home away from home for them.”

In turn, he maintains a fondness for Keene State College and what it brings to the Keene community. “Keene State brings a lot of money into the city and the kids not only spend money, but do a lot of good things around the community,” he said. “I love the school. I graduated from there, and I’m glad I did.”

Leaning on the counter, in front of photos of Greek-American actor Telly Savalas and famed aviator Charles “Lucky Lindy” Lindberg, who provided his nickname, Chakalos says he does contemplate a real retirement. “You always have that in the back of your mind,” he admitted. “But right now I still love it. It’s the only thing I know how to do.”