Chef Argyro Barbarigou

with her co-chef, Giorgos Kostas, tell Epikouria's Elena Fotiadi how to conquer boredom through cooking, why they turn their country upside down in search of new culinary consumables and what they see in Greece's traditional cuisine.

Some have suggested that you are Greece’s version of the legendary Alice Waters who, through her Berkeley restaurant Chez Panisse, revolutionized American eating practices by promoting organically grown and artisan products provided by small, local producers. Do you think that reintroducing Greeks to their regional artisan products will spark a similar interest in your countrymen?
I certainly share Ms. Water’s interest in sourcing my products from local producers, many of whom do not even market their products commercially. I have a passion for the finest quality in food and I’m a strong advocate of regional specialties when it comes to choosing products for my dishes. Each region has certain artisan products very characteristic to its land and culture as well as certain ways of preparing them.

I’m still discovering regional, locally- grown artisan products all the time; sharing my findings with my guests by putting them on the menu simply adds to my pleasure. When I first served Asparagus of the Sea to my customers they didn’t know what it was. Now they love it. Giorgos and I are revitalizing Greek traditional cuisine as practiced by our mothers and grandmothers. We love tradition, not only concerning the purity of the ingredients and products, but also when it comes to their preparation. When I first started running a restaurant, I injured my hand from manually kneading dough for the phyllo for my pites (savory pies). The injury required surgery.

How did you get started as a chef?
I’ve always been around people who loved to cook, both at home and as a profession. My parents owned a traditional taverna in Paros from the 1970s to the 1980s. My mother, Kostanza, is definitely my mentor and source of inspiration when it comes to cooking. Every time she had people over for dinner, it was an unforgettable culinary experience.

After I married Manolis, a sailor, we settled down in Paros. He loves seeing and discovering new things and he perceived his every day existence to be rather limited on the island, especially during the winter when the lifestyle was more isolating and less exciting. I had to think of a way to make the winter pass by more pleasantly so that he wouldn’t be bored. So I started throwing dinner parties almost every single night. Big groups of people, large amounts of food, different dishes – my small house in Paros was like a little restaurant, though only for friends and family. My friends were teasing me about becoming a chef in a real restaurant. Then my husband and I actually started thinking about it.

When we heard that the restaurant that had once belonged to my parents was for sale, we went after it. 18 years after my parents had sold it I bought it back again and this is when it all began. I named it Papadakis, which was my father’s nickname. He had passed away that same year.