Chef Profiles
Michael Psilakis
Photo by Michael Harlan Turkell
Rather than go the conventional culinary school route, Michael Psilakis learned the foundations of cooking from his Greek mother growing up in New York. The at-home training paid off and today, Psilakis is synonymous with modern Greek cuisine and his restaurants continue to win new fans.
Restaurants:
Website:
www.anthosnyc.comMichael Psilakis Stats:
- Born In:
- Queens Village, New York City, in 1968
- Training:
- “My training is all self-taught.”
- Mentors/Influences:
- “My greatest mentor and influence has been my mother. She taught me everything I know about flavors and techniques of classic Greek cooking, and she remains my greatest influence in the kitchen. Even today, the flavors of my dishes are my mother’s flavors. And my instincts for taking Greek cuisine in new directions – these I’ve inherited from her.”
- First Restaurant Job:
- “My first restaurant job came after college, when I worked as a waiter at T.G.I. Friday’s.”
- Signature Style:
- Greek-inspired cuisine
- Defining Culinary Moment:
- “When I was the owner of Ecco Restaurant in Long Island, I used to run the front-of-house. One day the chef and cook simply didn’t show on an evening when we had a lot of reservations on the books. So, without hesitating, I stepped into the kitchen and just started really cooking as the chef for the first time.”
- Favorite Food/Ingredient:
- “My favorite food [to work with] is raw fish because I can have a lot of control and achieve a really complex flavor profile in one small bite.”
