It is not at all hard to believe if you really think about it. The effects of “2020” continue to linger across the landscape. There are a lot of negative connotations that come with that, I know, but they aren’t all so. There have been a big number of businesses that were either created or really showed signs of growth because of that shutdown three very short years ago.

They say necessity is the mother of invention. Back then—how can we forget—everyone needed to eat, but people weren’t necessarily all that interested in going anywhere to get their food.

That dynamic gave way to a flood of catering companies popping up across the region. Yes, we already had plenty, but we could probably name six or seven that were created by restaurant owners during the shut down as a way of bringing in additional income when the numbers in their establishments were either low or non existent.

One of those that flourished and continues to today is right here in Savannah. Elena’s Enchanted Kitchen is a Greek and Mediterranean catering operation spearheaded by Elena Hugley.

“Honestly, it really propelled our business forward” is how Elena Hugley looks back on “2020.”

Elena is a veteran on the food and beverage scene here in town. She also happens to be of Greek descent, so we know she grew up around food. As is typically the case, there was a natural curiosity on how things were made when she was a child. That led to her beginning to make toffee as Christmas gifts for friends here in Savannah. By 2018 she was being asked to make more and more and more. That’s when the, she says, she saw the door cracked open and just ran right through it.

“I’ve been cooking my whole life.” she says “But it was when friends of friends and strangers started asking me to cook in 2018. By 2020 we had established a catering business.”

Just in time for everyone to need a variety of foods delivered to their homes.

By then, their website had been set up for catering of larger parties, which obviously weren’t happening back then. So they quickly pivoted.

“We took it down to a place where we could cook for two to four people, and we’d do doorstep/drop off delivery, and payment through PayPal, Venmo, Cash App, you know… so on and so forth. And what we ended up doing the entire shutdown was cooking, like, all day and all night, and at 6PM we’d go do deliveries.” Elena says.

That was three full years ago, of course. Today Elena (with the help of her husband Sonny) is keeping plenty busy, whether it be business lunches delivered in Savannah or trade shows and festivals that she has begun to attend around the state. Elena’s Enchanted Kitchen is handling it all. So much so, they’ve decided to start holding casual pop-up events at La Scala Ristorante in Savannah a few days a month. You know, an excuse to throw a party, share some great food and make a few bucks in the process.

“Honestly, it was my husband’s idea, but we were thinking we would do our baked goods, we would do savory pastries, baklava puffs, frappe, because nobody in this city sells it, we’re the only people in this city that sell authentic Nescafe Frappe from Greece, so we kinda sat down and came up with a plan, and then we got everything we needed, and launched it.” she says.

Considering the first pop up event was in dead of Summer, it was by all accounts a success. Now, they are looking to develop a following. They are held in the courtyard outside of La Scala on the First Friday of the month, then on Sundays from Noon until 2 p.m. Yes, beginning in September.

“It’s like a European cafe situation, you know people are—they’re coming out, they’re grabbing their fresh baked spanakopita pinwheels, hot and fresh, they’re getting their Nescafe Frappe, a frappe float with vanilla ice cream or pistachio gelato in it, they’re sitting down in the courtyard hanging out with their friends, eating pastries, drinking delicious Greek coffee, and catching up. They’re listening to a little Greek music, it’s a whole vibe. It’s awesome.”

Sounds like it. Can’t wait until the Greek Festival in October? Sounds like you don’t have to. Just show up in the courtyard at La Scala Ristorante (37th and Abercorn) and Eat It and Like It.

This article appears in Connect Savannah | August, 2023.