Andreas Lekatsas was a native of the Greek island of Ithaca

Ithaca

Ithaca or Ithaka is an island located in the Ionian Sea, in Greece, with an area of and a little more than three thousand inhabitants. It is also a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit. It lies off the northeast coast of Kefalonia and...

 and was one of the first Greeks to migrate to Australia

Greek diaspora

The Greek diaspora, also known as Hellenic Diaspora or Diaspora of Hellenism, is a term used to refer to the communities of Greek people living outside the traditional Greek homelands, but more commonly in southeast Europe and Asia Minor...

. He arrived in Melbourne before 1851 and initially moved to the goldfields of Ballarat. He soon found wealth, and a return journey to Ithaca inspired his nephews Anthony JJ Lucas

Anthony JJ Lucas

Anthony John Jereos Lucas was in influential Greek Australian businessman noted for his philanthropic activities and construction of numerous public and private buildings in Melbourne, Australia...

 and Marino Lucas

Marino Lucas

Marino Lucas/Marinos Lekatsas was a Greek-Australian businessman, originally residing in Greece and subsequently Melbourne, Hobart and Launceston, Australia.Marino was involved in the construction industry and the operation of theatres...

 to also move to Australia. Andreas may have taken part in the Eureka Stockade

Eureka Stockade

The Eureka Rebellion of 1854 was an organised rebellion by gold miners which occurred at Eureka Lead in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. The Battle of Eureka Stockade was fought on 3 December 1854 and named for the stockade structure erected by miners during the conflict...

 uprising, as the following passage from the Ithacan Philanthropic Society details.

Indeed a number of Ithacans went onto Melbourne after the gold-fields to make a living there. Andreas Lecatsas from Exoghi, Ithaca is said by his descendants to have jumped ship in 1851 to join the gold rush. Later he prospered as a Melbourne shop-keeper and returned to Ithaca some 20 years later to inspire some of his nephews to emigrate. Indeed, one nephew Antonios Lekatsas heeded his advice to see the new El Dorado and landed in Melbourne in 1877. It is said, but not authenticated that Andreas Lecatsas was present at the diggers’ stand at the Eureka Stockade near Ballarat in 1854.

The Lekatsas family (the name anglicised to Lucas) 'subsequently pioneered high-class restaurants in Melbourne'.