When the 2025 Gabby Awards unfold at the iconic Plaza Hotel in New York City, the night won’t only be a celebration of excellence—it will be a full-sensory journey worthy of the gods themselves.
A tradition to build cultural, culinary and musical bridges with Greece, the Greek America Foundation has once again invited two of Greece’s most celebrated culinary masters to join forces with The Plaza’s legendary chefs to craft a menu that will elevate the gala dinner into an experience that is not only delicious—but meaningful.
Acclaimed chefs Iosif Sykianakis and Yannis Markadakis will lead the kitchen, bringing their globally celebrated talents, rich cultural heritage, and boundless creativity to one of the most anticipated evenings in the Greek American community.
Together, they will channel the spirit of the Greek gods—not with thunderbolts and golden chariots, but with artfully composed dishes, rooted in memory, tradition, and love.
From Mykonos to Manhattan, from Piraeus to the Persian Gulf, these chefs have fed royalty, earned Michelin stars, and reinvented the Greek dining experience at every turn. Their collaboration for the Gabby Awards dinner will weave together their own Mesogeios mythology—honoring the flavors of the islands and the stories of the diaspora with elegance and soul.
Chef Iosif Sykianakis, a revered culinary consultant and television personality, is known for blending the deep flavors of the Mediterranean with refined European technique, honed in Michelin-starred kitchens in Paris. He brings decades of experience from Greece’s most luxurious resorts and elite private events, along with his signature charisma and warm presence as a chef on Greek national television.
Chef Yannis Markadakis, co-owner of Athens’ beloved Seychelles and the visionary behind Stellar, is a storyteller of a different kind—one who cooks with memory, place, and emotion. His menus have dazzled on land and sea, from Michelin-starred Junoon in New York to the royal superyacht Katara. Whether creating five-course cinematic dinners or reimagining humble taverna favorites, his cuisine is a poetic dialogue between old world and new.
For one night only, these two titans of taste will transform The Plaza’s famed kitchen into Olympus itself—serving a meal not just fit for guests, but for gods and goddesses.
For more information, visit https://greekamerica.org/gabbyawards2025.