A Bayside chef wins big on a popular TV show. NY1's Shannan Ferry got a chance to chat with her about the experience.
Maria Petridis is officially a cooking champion. The Bayside chef won the coveted title on the Food Networks hit show Chopped.
"I never thought that one day I have to cook in a kitchen, or nevertheless competing in Chopped," she said.
Petridis owns Maria's Mediterranean Seafood & Grill on Bell Boulevard.
She moved to Queens from Greece in her twenties, and said she uses her heritage as inspiration for her meals.
She has no formal training, but spent years feeding her family before before her husband gifted her with a restaurant seven years ago.
"Cooking is like an art, to me, it's like I'm painting in a canvass every single time that I'm creating a dish," she said.
On Chopped, Petridis was given random ingredients and was challenged to create three dishes.
She wowed the judges with her sea bass, stuffed eggplant, and baklava.
Reporter: "What is going through your mind when that clock is ticking?"
Petridis: "Please, don't be the first one to leave, don't be the first one to leave!"
Petridis said she eventually plans to add the dishes she cooked on the show to the restaurants menu.
"I wanna see that first reaction, that first bite, that people put in their mouth, that mmmm, that satisfaction gives me the ok," she said.
Petridis said she plans to donate her $10,000 prize to the Make-a-Wish Foundation.
"If I can do something just to make them smile, gladly," she said.
She'll continue to make others smile with acts of kindness and of course, with her food.