Chef Profile
Posted by estiator at 9 February, at 11 : 19 AM Print
Christos Bisiotis
EGEO, ASTORIA, NY
Christos Bisiotis recently celebrated his 13th year in the United States. “I arrived here on Christmas Day in 2007,” he says, “because that was the day that had the cheapest flights.” He had just one week’s wages from his restaurant job in Athens in his pocket. Not wanting to squander his meager savings on a hotel, he slept outside in Astoria Park, waking up with a fever of 102. But, he says, the experience prepared him for the challenges that were to come. In short order, he graduated from position to position, taking the knowledge and education he received in Greece’s culinary world and applying them under the wing of celebrity chef Mario Batali.
“Mario taught me to truly love cooking,” says Bisiotis. “Working for him, I learned to appreciate the things I had taken for granted. He helped me to become a better chef professionally, and a better person.”
At the same time that he was working with the Eataly founder, Bisiotis was invited to cook for the Obama family at the White House, an experience he could have never envisioned on that first night in Astoria Park. He soon became a regular fixture there, while also cooking for events for Congress. Later, after leaving Batali’s organization, Bisiotis headed to the Avra Group, where he held various posts, including serving as opening chef at the restaurant’s Beverly Hills outpost.
Bisiotis, who is father to two young children (Chris Brendan, 8, and Anne Bella, 4) professes great affection for both his home country and the nation that has adopted him: “I can say that Greece gave birth to me, but the U.S. made me a man,” he says.
He started working in kitchens at age 11. “My family had a bakery and I would deliver to the restaurants,” he says. One night, he had to make a late delivery at a time when the restaurant was busy. “I opened the kitchen door and the noise and yelling and screaming got me excited,” he says. “I knew right away that I really wanted to work there.”
Age: 31
Hails from: Piraeus and Athens, with roots in Mani
Number of years in kitchens: 20
Previous affiliations: Milos Hudson Yards (Executive Chef), Avra Group (all locations), Eataly (original location as Chef de Cuisine; opened restaurants globally, including Dubai, Istanbul, and Chicago)
Career milestones: Opening Chef at Avra Beverly Hills; cooked regularly at the White House for the Obama family as well as for Congress
Mentors: Mario Batali Education
Education: OTEK (culinary school in Greece)
Culinary point of view: “I always say that I’m a chef that has one foot in reality and the other in romance. I want my guests to know the story behind the food I prepare. I want to educate them; to teach them the history behind the food, where the ingredients come from, and why those ingredients are special. In my home, I make fresh pasta in front of my children so they can see and understand what real pasta is. Life isn’t about finding everything ready; this applies to food and to life in general. The result is that my guests are given an experience, not just a meal. Running a restaurant isn’t about the money, it’s about how the guests feel.”
On the purist approach: “I’m a huge fan of going into a place and knowing that it has an identity. I don’t understand ‘Mediterranean’: I understand Greek, I understand Italian, I understand Spanish, etc. And so I’m not a fan of fusion cuisine or of complicating flavors or dishes. I have come to realize that the most difficult thing is to do the simplest things correctly. For me, a great meal is a great piece of fish, with ladomeno, sea salt and fresh lemon—this is what makes me happy. Now with the ability to have fresh fish delivered from the waters of Greece to your plate in 18 hours, it has opened up a new possibilities.”
Tip: “A good server can save a bad meal, but a good chef cannot save bad service.”
