Merci Chef!
Merci Chef! is the French Embassy in Greece's annual week of French gastronomy, co-organised with the Institut Français de Grèce; the third edition ran from 1 to 6 March 2026, with eight French chefs — several holding the Meilleur Ouvrier de France title — cooking alongside sixteen Greek counterparts across Athens and beyond.
Merci Chef! is the French Embassy in Greece’s annual week of French gastronomy, co-organised with the Institut Français de Grèce. The third edition ran from 1 to 6 March 2026. Eight French chefs — several carrying the Meilleur Ouvrier de France title, the state distinction conferred only once every several years — cooked alongside sixteen Greek chefs and sommeliers across venues in Athens and other Greek cities. The week included four-hands dinners, masterclasses, wine dialogues, and seminars.
The named participants in the 2026 edition included Arnaud Larher (MOF in pastry, working at the Athénée), Laëtitia Gaborit (MOF in cheese, giving masterclasses on cutting and pairing French cheeses with Greek spirits), and Rodolph Couston (MOF in bakery, working at Deux Amis). The week also included a charitable strand, with croissants and juice taken to patients and staff of the Evangelismos Hospital.
Merci Chef! was first held in 2024. The 2026 edition extended beyond Athens to Thessaloniki, Corfu, Crete, and Rhodes. The full programme is published by the Embassy in the weeks before the event.