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The top Greek chef of Italian origin Ektoras Botrini has won a contest in Brussels among six of the best in his profession and he will serve Mediterranean cuisine at the summits of European Union leaders. Botrini is a recognized chef in Greece, but gained wide popularity after the TV show "Kitchen Nightmares." During the TV show, the top chef is invited to various restaurants and taverns to renew them and in many cases, to save them from bankruptcy. Botrini is known not only for his excellent skills in the professional kitchen, but for his wild temper and pursuit of perfection.

For the secret of his victory in Brussels, Botrini told Star TV, "We prepared a menu that is hit by the crisis. It is based on simple products and Mediterranean recipes." Greek journalists joke that Europe will eat from the hands of Greece again and Star states that revenge is best served cold, referring to the portion provided for Angela Merkel.

Ektoras Botrini's show "Kitchen Nightmares" is on Alpha TV and it has been very successful ever since 2009. It was created under licence from the British show "Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares," Ramsey also being a well-known TV chef. Mega TV offers another type of cookery show - "Master Chef", which is also the Greeks’ favourite. Unlike Botrini's show, "Master Chef" is a form of competition in which a group of chefs are struggling to reach the top to be rewarded with the honorary title. This show has a special edition for children, where kids between 10 and 13 years old learn to cook.

Culinary shows on Greek television have been flourishing in the last two years and they have recently displaced the popular television series produced locally. "As we cannot afford to go to expensive restaurants anymore, we can at least see how they cook there," viewers joke.