Mr Gregoriou opened Tony's Chicken Shop in 1985 as a 23-year-old. The Crown Street store started as a fish, chicken and chips shop and now has an even more expansive variety of takeaway food.

In July 2020, Mr Gregoriou retired and passed on the store to new management.

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He says he "had a very good rest" during his brief retirement and is now back to "pick it up and lift it up".

Tony opened the doors to Tony's Chicken Shop on Monday and loyal customers were waiting.

One such customer is Wollongong resident Peter Zeidler who used to work in the BP Paramount service station across the road.

Mr Zeidler entered the store and exclaimed: "It's like a reunion!"

The Wollongong resident, who knew Tony before he opened the store, was a regular customer. His go-to favourites are chicken, potato and coleslaw salad.

"There's not a bad thing I can say about Tony - I'm a longtime friend, longtime customer," Mr Zeidler said.

Loyal customers are not the only ones enjoying a reunion as former staff also are returning.

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Amit Khanna, worked there as a student from 2012 to 2014, decided to return when he heard Mr Gregoriou was coming back to manage the store.

"You can learn a lot of stuff from him the way he treats people, he has good ethics," Mr Khanna said.

"He always has like a bit extra for the community. Some hungry people come in and he gives them food."

So, why did he come back from a brief retirement to manage the store?

"[The store] is my baby. I held this baby for 35 years in my hands, and I nursed it," Mr Gregoriou said.

"The last 35 years of my life was practically in the shop."

Mr Gregoriou immigrated to Wollongong as a refugee with his family from Cyprus, Greece in 1975: "I'll never leave Wollongong. I love Wollongong."

The shop also has catering for many a celebration in the past - from milestone birthdays to weddings - and many have been remembered fondly on the store's Facebook page.

Reading the comments from a community which has welcomed his return to wholeheartedly has been thrilling, Mr Gregoriou, who lives in Figtree, said.

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