Executive Chef

Giovanni Sias

Giovanni Sias, a native Sardinian with a passion for fine food, asserts that his curiosity and enthusiasm for cooking started early in life. At 10 years old, Giovanni began fishing with his grandfather off the coast of Sardinia. Together they would cook the fish that they caught, and serve the entire family. Giovanni discovered that his greatest satisfaction comes from cooking for others and watching as they try something new. For him, the secret to good cooking is the feeling that goes into it. "I cook what I feel," he says.

In 1991, Giovanni graduated from the Italian Culinary institute of Sassari in Sardinia. He refined his skills in top-notch hotel restaurants, such as the Grand Hotel Majestic in Pallanza Vebania, the Hotel Printemps di Pila in Aosta province, and Hotel Moresco di Santa Teresa di Gallura. 

In 1995, Giovanni established the restaurant, Face, in Davos, Switzerland. From 1997 to 2001, he served as Sous-chef at the Jolly Hotel Carlton in Amsterdam; the restaurant there was touted as the best Italian restaurant in the Netherlands. 

During his many years of formal training, the one thing Giovanni craved was freedom to experiment with ingredients. He envisioned a more innovative Italian cuisine, and wanted to integrate traditional recipes with contemporary flavors to yield dishes that would be inventive.

In 2001, Giovanni left Amsterdam to become executive chef of another Jolly Hotel restaurant, the swanky Jolly Hotel Madison Towers in New York City. There Giovanni opened Ristorante Cinque Terre and established himself as one of the leading chefs in New York.

Giovanni became executive chef of Hostaria Mazzei in 2005. His expertise in Italian cuisine has quickly found it's way onto the menu and in the nightly specials.