Philip CHRONOPOULOS

Chef : 1 restaurant From Venice to Paris, Philip Chronopoulos sublimates his Greek roots through daring recipes. Here's how his journey led him to take the helm at Nolinsky.

Presentation

Initially attracted to industrial design, Philip Chronopoulos discovered cooking thanks to a stroke of fate: a friend of his father's, who was passionate about gastronomy, gave up his place in a pastry-making class. The young Greek then decided to enter the field. at the age of 18, on the advice of Breton chef Jacques Thorel, he flew to France to attend the Paul Bocuse school. " I couldn't even cook a hard-boiled egg or speak three words of French," he recalls.

After a spell in Lyon, he left for London to join Joël Robuchon's Atelier. " They were endless days, but I wanted to show my family that I could do it. on his return to Paris, he joined Alain Passard at L'Arpège. " He had a beauty of gesture, it was inspiring," he recalls. He was then hired as a commis at Laboratoire Robuchon for three and a half years. " It was incredible, there was Monsieur Robuchon, my master Éric Bouchenoire and two little cooks, including me. It was like a permanent masterclass.

Reconnecting with his roots

In 2011, he had to return to Greece to do his military service. It was a culture shock for the Chef. He then became a chef on a yacht, with the idea of opening a restaurant in Athens, but Éric Bouchenoire called him to offer him a position at Atelier Étoile. He left in 2015, aged 29, as Head Chef. " I'd been working for Monsieur Robuchon for seven years. It was time for me to create and exist on my own ".

that's how he came to head up the kitchens at Evok Collection's Palais Royal Restaurant in 2015. But the confinement of 2020 turned his vision of cooking upside down. " I'm challenging myself. I didn't want to be seen as a Greek chef making Greek food, when that was obvious ". on his return to the stove, he let loose and returned to his roots. Since 2023, this mezze-filled cuisine has also been on offer at Palais Royal Restaurant in the Nolinski Venezia.

Biography & Awards

1986 born in Athens, Greece

2006 internship at Joël Robuchon's Atelier in London

2008 meat clerk at the Robuchon laboratory

2011 Sous-chef, then head chef at L'Atelier Étoile

2015 takes charge of the kitchens at Palais Royal Restaurant - Evok

2020 Executive Chef of Nolinski Hotels

2023 Chef at Palais Royal Restaurant Venezia, Venice