MARIA EKMEKCIOGLOU: "The cook puts the materials and the soul makes the taste”!

Maria Ekmekcioglou, a special lady of Istanbul, a famous chef and not only…. Maria is a beautiful woman with a strong personality, exuberant, romantic, mother and housewife, but also a successful businesswoman. She is a truly dynamic woman, fact which can be clearly proved by her attitude towards life, but also by the successful career she has managed to make all these years in a life that was not easy for her, because nothing was given to her for free. With hard work, boldness and courage, with perseverance and patience, Maria managed to overcome all the problems and difficulties she faced and make her dreams come true, resulting in her great professional success.

Maria was born in Istanbul, next to the Bosporus, in Candili. She began to cook at an early age, when she was little girl, when the flavors, smells, colors and aromas in her parents' home filled her life and led her to her first cooking steps. For Maria cooking was her big dream and now her love and passion, it is purpose of life; it's not just a job or a profession for her. Maria’s unique in taste and delicious meals have fascinated the Turks who visit "Maria's Garden" restaurant in Istanbul. From 2016 she also enchants the Greeks with the restaurant she opened in Athens. The place of her work is her second home, as she says, so she has decorated it in a way that makes both herself and her guests feel beautiful and comfortable. "I want the atmosphere in my restaurants to be cozy and authentic. I want the visitor to feel as if he is in a friend's house or like eating at home. "

Apart from "Maria's Restaurants" chain, a successful family business owned by Maria and her three sons, there are many other professional achievements of the famous cook. She presents culinary TV-shows on both sides of the Aegean Sea, forcing housewives - and not only - to be constantly with a pencil and a paper in hand writing her unique recipes. She is taking part in many gastronomy events, presenting live the unique “cuisine” and her excellent meals; she has written many books with cooking instructions and recipes. Maria Ekmekcioglou teaches gastronomy at the OKAN University in Istanbul. She is a member of the Chaines Des Rotisseurs of the Turkish Gastronomy Association, the Chef's Club of Thessaloniki and a member of the Association of Lost Flavors. In addition to all the above, Maria is also a "nice person", with a strong soul and a warm heart, pleasant and friendly to all people. Her successful career and celebrity didn't spoil her character, she is accessible to everybody.

IT IS REALLY WORTH to know her, to visit her restaurants and taste her wonderful “creations”!