Angelo Chantilis: A Life of Friendship, Family, and Burgers
Angelo Chantilis, the Burger House co-owner and longtime Park Cities resident who was “everybody’s best friend,” said one of his daughters, died on Nov. 7. Chantilis was 95.
Chantilis was the face of the Dallas-based Burger House for nearly 50 years. The original Burger House near Southern Methodist University was initially owned by Prometheus “Jack” Koustoubardis, starting in 1951. Chantilis took his kids for burgers at the Snider Plaza shop for years, speaking Greek to Koustoubardis each time he’d stop in.
Eventually, Chantilis and Steve Canellos, his best friend, bought the restaurant in 1982.
Chantilis and Canellos already had a background in restaurants as the owners of a diner called Googie’s in Dallas. They were “serious” about Burger House, Chantilis’ kids recall.
Early Life and Career
Before Chantilis moved to Dallas, he was raised in a Greek family in Chicago. He served as a firefighter in the Korean War.
Though Chantilis was a runner and a healthy eater for much of his life, he made time for his three favorite things: burgers, steaks, and coffee. The burgers, of course, came from the shop he was so proud to co-own. His order was a hamburger — no cheese — with onions, tomatoes, jalapeños, and hot sauce.
The Burger House Years
Chantilis was quick to fix anything in the restaurant that needed an improvement. He also loved working the window, so he could meet customers and learn their favorite dishes.
“He was really proud of the place,” said Sonny Chantilis, who has been involved in the family business for much of his life. The Chantilis and Canellos families are still involved in the original Burger House in University Park, another on E. Mockingbird Lane, and a third on Marsh Lane in the Addison area.
The original Burger House opened on Hillcrest Avenue in University Park in 1951. Angelo Chantilis became involved in 1982.
Sarah Blaskovich/Staff
Personal Life and Legacy
Chantilis was easy to talk to. “He was everybody’s best friend,” Connie Chantilis said. “He wrote his own rules, he did his own deal and he had a ball being Angelo Chantilis.”
He was also the president of his Greek Orthodox Church and a dancer.
On Oct. 18, Chantilis walked down the aisle at his granddaughter Madeleine Elder’s Greek Orthodox wedding. It was one of his last big family get-togethers, organized so Chantilis and his wife of 65 years could experience their granddaughter’s big day in Dallas. The ceremony was in the afternoon.
“He got to wake up slow that day, get his coffee and get situated,” Elder said of her grandfather, whom she called “Papau.”
“He’s my favorite person in our family,” Elder said, “and I know I was one of his.”
Angelo Chantilis, who co-owned Burger House in Dallas and University Park since 1982, is pictured here celebrating his 91st birthday at Toulouse, one of his favorite Dallas restaurants.
Chantilis family files
