Captain's Diner coming to Padre Island...or is it?

• Captain's Diner on Padre Island set to open on May 1
• Owner still needs to hire staff for about every position before he can open the restaurant
• Greek family restaurant, owner used to own Beeville Diner

Padre Island residents have been eagerly awaiting the grand opening of Captain's Diner on Padre Island. The owner, Minos Talarantas, is no stranger to the restaurant industry. He used to own the Beeville Diner in Beeville until he sold it last year. He was planning on retiring after selling Beeville Diner, but his retirement didn't last long. One issue he is facing before the grand opening of his new restaurant, Captain's Diner, in a few short weeks, is the need for more employees.

“I think that’s a problem we have out here on the island is getting staff and keeping staff. Because either you have to live here on the island where it's convenient, or if you have to come in over the bridge, it’s hard for some people," Sally Gavnik said.

Talarantas has been working tirelessly on getting Captain's Diner on Padre Island up and running for the past few months. He said that the menu will feature various seafood and steak items, as well as authentic Greek dishes. People who used to frequent the Beeville Diner are extremely excited to see Talarantas bringing his business and cuisine to Padre Island. One of those people is Sally Gavnik, who lives on Padre Island, but used to work in Beeville.

“It was really nice. The food was excellent. It was kind of home style. A lot of the community was eating there when I was there. Everyone that I talked to when I was in Beeville was really sad that it is leaving. They felt like it was their one really really good restaurant," Sally Gavnik, said.

Captain's Diner is going to have a similar vibe and menu to Beeville Diner. Captain's Diner will be serving lunch and dinner seven days a week, and serving breakfast on Saturdays and Sundays.

“The island is slowly moving into that because that’s a very big demand of the islanders out here. A lot of businesses are slowly trying to move into serving breakfast and brunch," Tisha Gavnik, a Padre Island resident said.

Padre Island residents are very welcoming to new small businesses on the island.

"With COVID, a lot of the restaurant actually did close. We welcome small businesses to our island because they are kind of like the little heart and gem of our island," Tisha Gavnik said. "So, when I heard that another place is coming out here, and bringing things to the island that we don't have, I'm super excited, especially Greek food and stuff like that, we don’t have anything like that on the island."

Talarantas wanted his original grand opening to be in April. However, he had to postpone it to May 1. He is hopeful that the restaurant will still be ready to open on May 1. Many of his family members will be working at Captain's Diner, but he is in the process of hiring more cooks, bartenders, servers, and hosts.

To apply for a job at Captain's Diner, applications can be picked up from a manager inside of the restaurant located at 15541 S. Padre Island Drive.

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