Chip’s Restaurant continues to foster its family roots of food and community

(Ad) For Dina Bajko, continuing the success of Chip’s Restaurant is more than economics- it’s a passion and a family legacy. In the early 2000’s, Dina’s brother, George Chatzopoulos, bought the eatery’s Orange location and led it to expand.

He passed away in 2022 from cancer, and Dina and her husband Adam took the helm. The family has a long history of food service.

“We love what we do. We came here as a family in 1987 with my parents. We had family here. My brother started off working as a dishwasher. My father was a cook. When I was 15, I started as a server,” she said.

Now Dina and her husband Adam, along with their three sons, are passionate about continuing to be a stronghold in the communities of Orange and Fairfield.

Where everybody knows your name

Adam Bajko said that the family wants to be the “Cheers” of the pancake world.

“When people come in, they are happy go lucky, we are treating them like an extension of our family at both locations,” he said.

Because Chip’s has been around so long, often several generations come in together.

Of course, pancakes – and breakfast – are extremely popular at Chip’s. And with 40 different varieties of pancakes, and 30 different varieties of omelets, how could it not be?

Pancake additions include anything one can think of, from blueberry compote to coco crunch, fresh strawberries butterscotch chips, M & Ms, Nutella, raisins and more.

The fluffy omelet is particularly popular as well as the traditional diner style.

But Chip’s is more than just an indulgent breakfast, it offers plenty of healthy lunch and dinner options.

Adam pointed out that despite the extensive and varied menu, Chip’s staff makes it its mission to be allergy friendly.

“We have taken the steps to make sure the kitchen staff is trained so there is no cross-contamination,” he said.

Scratch made

“People have said our pancakes are so good they don’t need syrup,” Dina said.

She added that everything at Chip’s is made from scratch.

“We always use fresh ingredients – nothing comes in prepared ahead of time. Everything is made fresh,” she said.

Dina said that is inspired by growing up in her native Greece, where family meals were literally farm to table.

“My parents were farmers, and we used our seasonal fresh vegetables. That’s how we ate in our household, and I wouldn’t serve my customers anything less,” she said.

Community support

“Chip’s is very involved with the local schools, from kindergarten to high school, and college, we do a lot of fundraising,” Dina said.

Adam added that once a month at both locations, they feature a special “pancakes for dinner” fundraiser that donates all proceeds.

Dina also donates proceeds from a certain pancake sale to find a cure for Alzheimer’s Disease in honor of her mother.

 “Keeping the memory of my parents and brother alive is very important to me,” she said.

This is the lesson she and Adam are teaching their three sons, AJ,15, Alex, 13, and Evan, 7. Evan is also a star in his own right, featured in his interview series for Chip’s.

“We came to this country and had to struggle to get what we needed. Our children are not living that way, but it is important for us to teach them that hard work and values are important,” Dina said.

And those family values are what set Chip’s apart from other eateries, Dina said, and why she is committed to its future.

“We just want to continue to feed families. We are here because of the community, and we want to give back,” she said.

Chip’s is located in Fairfield and Orange and is open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Visit https://chipsrestaurants.com/ for more information.

The previous content is a paid advertisement for Chip’s Restaurant.