Philip Vakos Hits the Top 10 on MasterChef Greece (and Is Crowned Dessert Chef of the Season)
Updated June 2026
Hobart-born, Melbourne-running, Cretan-blooded Philip Vakos has done what no Australian chef has done before. He has cracked the Top 10 on MasterChef Greece. Fifteen years after his first MasterChef stint (Australia, Season 2, 2010), he is back on a stove. This time the kitchen is in Greek, the audience is two and a half million homes, and the country is watching.
Melbourne chef Philip Vakos has reached the Top 10 of the 10th season of MasterChef Greece, currently airing four nights a week on Greek Star Channel. The judges have crowned him Dessert Chef of the Season after a run of creative desserts that has made him a much-loved favourite with the panel and the audience alike.
Why this one matters
Philip is the first Greek-Australian chef to ever compete on MasterChef Greece, and the first Australian to compete on MasterChef in two different countries. He is representing Australian Greeks alongside contestants who have travelled back from Dubai, Egypt, Germany, Switzerland and Amsterdam, all returning to the country of their grandparents to cook for a Greek audience.
For Tina’s original profile of Philip when the news first broke, read Melbourne chef Philip Vakos returns to his roots on MasterChef Greece.
Top 10, Red Brigade, and the Mother of all battles
This season has done something the Australian version never has. Two brigades, a Red and a Blue, have been battling each other week by week. They are now down to a final 5 each, and Philip is part of the Reds.
The next stretch is the bit the show calls “The Mother of all battles.” Two teams of 5, hardest challenges of the season, and one whole team gets sent home in entirety. Five chefs left standing. The title up for grabs.
Philip is cementing his place in the Reds with broad culinary skill, a steady run of creative desserts, and the kind of game that wins audiences over: fair, honest, and generous to his team. Greek is his second language, which makes the rapport he has built with the panel and the brigade more impressive than the highlight reels show.
The short backstory
For the full version, read the original Cycladic Spaces profile. The short version: Philip grew up in Hobart with two Cretan grandmothers. His grandparents migrated from Crete to Tasmania in the 1940s. He was an accountant by trade before competing on Australian MasterChef in 2010, then moved to Melbourne to chase the food.
He and his wife Heleena have run Bahari on Swan Street in Richmond since October 2013. Twelve years now, packed most nights, always with Philip’s specials going up on the board. Last year the duo launched Phlavour, a Mediterranean ready-meals delivery business that has become a regular for Melbourne families, professionals and the elderly community.
How Australians can watch
The show airs four nights a week, Monday to Thursday at 21:00 Greek time on Star Channel. From Australia you need a VPN to stream it live. For the easier path:
Highlights and behind-the-scenes on Philip’s Instagram @philipvakos and his YouTube channel.
Episode-by-episode commentary in English on Heleena’s @gringlish.co.
The show’s official accounts: @starchanneltv and @masterchefgr.
Why this story is a Cycladic Spaces story
Philip is doing the diaspora journey in reverse. His grandparents left Crete in the 1940s carrying recipes. Eighty years later he has gone back carrying tweaks. He is cooking in Greek kitchens, judged by Greek chefs, competing against Greek expats from six countries, in front of millions of Greeks. Greek television has never told a Greek-Australian story at this scale before. It is airing right now, four nights a week.
The next few weeks are the hardest of the season. The Mother of all battles starts now. We will be watching.
Cycladic Spaces tip: if you are in Melbourne, go to Bahari before the next round of episodes drops. The MasterChef bump on a Richmond restaurant in week three of the Top 10 is going to make a Saturday booking very hard to find.
