What were your favorite foods growing up?
I was a big protein fan. My parents are Greek and my Mother always cooked traditional dishes. We did a lot of hunting and fishing and whatever we caught, my mother cooked it. I would also do anything for chocolate!

What is your least favorite food?
Cake

What is your beverage of choice?
I'm constantly drinking water and coffee.

What was the most spectacular meal you have ever had?
I had the most amazing meal while on my honeymoon in Italy. We went to La Chiusa in Montefollonico. I was disappointed at first when the food came out because it looked SO simple. But when I tasted it, I had a revelation about cooking. It's all about coaxing out the true flavor of the ingredients.

What do you eat when you are home?
I get home very late at night and leave pretty early, so most of the eating I do at home is snacking. I eat a lot of fruit.

What is your best cooking tip for a home enthusiast?
Great knives can be expensive, but they're definitely worth the cost.

Where and when did your career in food begin?
Food was always a huge part of my life growing up, so I think it started subconsciously at a very early age. I played different roles in the industry in different times of my life, from a server, to a manager and then eventually a chef.

When did you decide you wanted to be a chef?
I made the decision one fateful night when the chef of the restaurant I was managing never showed up. The dining room was fully booked, and I couldn't turn all those people away. I changed out of my suit into some whites and started cooking. I've never put the suit back on.

If you didn't become a chef, what would you be?
I'd be a poet or a writer.

Who/what has shaped your cooking the most over the years?
My mother is definitely my culinary inspiration. All of my dishes, even those that are most modern, are rooted in the Greek food she made. She is still part of my creative process as I often have her taste dishes to make sure she can identify them as "Greek."

What influences your cooking style?
I'm constantly fueled by my desire to show the world that Greek food should have a place on the global culinary stage.

Which foreign country inspires your style most?
Greece; but also Italy

What are your favorite culinary weapons in the kitchen?
I'm not a gadget guy. All I need in the kitchen is a sharp knife, a pan and some fire.

What is your favorite secret ingredient?
I love using bay leaf because it adds a complexity that is hard to identify when you're eating it.

If I'm trying to watch my weight and I'm eating at your restaurant, what am I ordering to eat?
Fortunately for our guests, Greek food is very healthful. The Mediterranean diet has very little fat or butter. Specifically, Anthos has an amazing Greek Salad and the raw meze, which is like Greek sushi, is very healthful.

When you are not eating at your own restaurant... you are eating at?
At my mother's house

What are some recent dining and culinary trends you have been observing?
Some big trends I see now are high-end chefs opening more affordable spots; upscale delivery; produce-heavy cocktails; healthy eating; and of course, Greek food becoming more mainstream!

What was the most challenging meal you had to make? Why?
I had to fight through my nervousness when I cooked for Alain Ducasse. I didn't let anyone help me at all. I had to cook all of it! It was thrilling, but nerve racking!

What was your worst restaurant disaster?
My partner, Donatella Arpaia, and I were forced to close our restaurant, Dona, when the building was sold to a developer. It was a disaster because the restaurant was doing really well.

What is the one rule or value you try to instill in all of your staff?
We strive to cook our own food and not be influenced by other chefs' creations. I want what we're putting out to be a reflection of our ideas, something that's new to the world.