The Customer
Named one of America’s 50 best restaurants by The New York Times, Kouklas Greek Eatery is a contemporary Greek restaurant in Niles, Illinois, led by James Beard Award-winning Chef Jimmy Bannos Jr. and longtime collaborator Chef Kevin Stack. The restaurant offers traditional Greek flavors with seasonal ingredients, live-fire cooking, and dishes designed around sharing.
Bannos Jr. a fourth-generation restauranteur, brings his Greek heritage to Kouklas alongside longtime collaborator Kevin Stack. After years of working together at The Purple Pig, the chefs have created a fresh approach to Greek dining, pairing traditional flavors with modern techniques and warm hospitality.
One of Kouklas’ standout menu items is its Greek frozen yogurt, made in-house, available in plain and seasonal flavors such as strawberry, chocolate, pumpkin, etc.. Toppings include Greek olive oil, black volcanic sea salt, and freeze-dried strawberries (seasonal).
The Challenge
Kouklas wanted to build awareness and drive sales in its neighborhood and throughout Chicagoland. The restaurant had experienced chefs and a strong brand, but it was a newer concept in an area where potential customers were less familiar with tapas-style modern Greek dining.
The marketing needed to communicate what made Kouklas different and give people a clear reason to visit. That meant introducing the restaurant to nearby diners while showing customers across the Chicago area why it was worth the trip to Niles.
For Social Gold, the opportunity was to spotlight something specific and memorable: a dish people would want to try, even if they had never visited Kouklas before.
The Approach
Social Gold positioned the frozen yogurt as an accessible entry point to the Kouklas experience. The product was familiar enough to generate immediate appeal, while its Greek-inspired toppings and presentation gave it a distinctive point of view.
The content strategy focused on three elements:
- Make the product the hero: Reels highlighted the yogurt, flavors, and toppings so viewers could quickly understand what made it different.
- Create immediate appetite appeal: Direct hooks such as “Craving this Greek yogurt soft serve?” turned the content into an invitation to try it.
- Connect interest to action: Messages such as “So worth the drive to the Chicago suburbs” framed the dessert as a reason to visit, not simply another item on the menu.
This approach gave Kouklas a clear, ownable story to tell. Social Gold identified the frozen yogurt as an opportunity to create engaging, product-focused content that could reach new audiences.
The Results
In July, Kouklas sold 568 Greek frozen yogurts, including both plain and strawberry. A single Instagram Reel also generated more than 20,500 views and hundreds of likes, introducing the dessert to a much larger audience.
The restaurant also saw customers making special trips specifically for the dessert. Managing partner Audrey Witte told the Chicago Sun-Times that guests were regularly stopping in between 9 and 9:45 p.m. just to try the frozen yogurt before closing.
The campaign showed how social content can influence behavior beyond the platform. The content was not simply generating views and engagement. It was helping turn online attention into in-person visits.
Opening a new location or looking to bring more guests through the door? Social Gold helps restaurants turn what makes them special into marketing that gives people a reason to visit. Let’s talk about your restaurant.
