How Marlenka Conquered the World: This Traditional Armenian Pastry Is Exported to 50+ Countries (Video Report)

The customers liked the honey cakes, and Avetisyan began distributing them in the neighborhood. That’s how the new, and, as it would soon turn out, highly successful business started. Avetisyan named his brand Marlenka after his daughter Marlena Avetisyan. Marlena is also the name of Gevorg’s mother.

The story with a cross sounds like a miracle, doesn’t it? But it is an ever-present narrative in the Czech Republic. It has been told in different programs and literally a dozen films, both documentary and fiction movies, dedicated to the story of Marlenka. Commercial billboards of the country’s main Volksbank, which financed Marlenka’s growth at some point, feature the picture of Avetisyan in the downtown of Prague. Volksbank cites Marlenka as one of the best investments it ever made.

“Our origins go back to the historic town of Van. My great-grandfather Varazdat Melikian traveled from Van to Istanbul to set up pastry production there. He was very successful. He developed some recipes that made his pastry distinguished. I have been told that in 1915 the Turks hung him in front of his mill. Our family preserved the secret of his honey cakes. That’s why Marlenkas are different from other honey cakes that exist on the market,” Avetisyan continued.

After Marlenka became popular, other companies tried to produce similar pastries and even emulated the brand’s name: fake cakes under fake names like Marmetka, Marchenka and others, however, did not succeed. Varazdat Melikian’s authentic recipe and the hard work of his descendant paid off.

In a very symbolic way, the very first café of Prague was set up by another Armenian whose name also happened to be Gevorg. The café in the old part of the city, near the famous medieval bridge of the capital, still exists.

“Ever since I settled down in the Czech Republic, I heard talks about Armenian Gevorg Deodatus, the founder of the first coffee shop of Prague. But I wasn’t sure if this was a well-established historical fact or not. As it turned out, this story is completely true. I visited the National Archives and discovered that all the documents pertaining to our compatriot Gevorg from Damascus are enshrined there. I have the story about Deodatus inside the box of my cake. Also, it’s on display at the museum I have set up at my headquarters,” concluded Avetisyan.

In 2015, the country’s spiritual leadership gave one of the city churches to the growing Armenian community. “I believe that sooner or later, it would still have happened,” says Gevorg. However, Marlenka’s owner expedited the work.

Follow the video link below to learn more about Gevorg Avetisyan’s visit to Armenia with the president of the Czech Republic in 2014. Gevorg relates how the Czech Republic recognized the Armenian Genocide and how Armenian students from Damascus Gevorg Deodatus (Astvadzaturian) opened the first café in Prague in the 18^th century.