Charles Agouros, chef of Centurion and MYBA 2026 Superyacht Chefs' Competition winner (35 meters and under category) on creating the perfect dish — and why he tore up his competition menu the day before and started again.
Chef Charles Agouros of Centurion was arguably the least prepared chef in the competition — entirely by his own design. “I decided to change my menu the day before,” he laughs. “I was having a crisis of confidence. I always try to cook great things, beautiful things, different things, and I really wanted to impress the judges, but I wasn’t sure I was doing that with my current menu. So I went for a walk in the Sanremo countryside, sat in a field and looked at the flowers, and that’s when I decided to rethink everything. I think I stressed the captain out a little…!”
His winning menu — in his first-ever cooking competition — started with a moreish chia coconut parfait infused with lavender honey and served in a ball with strawberry coulis.
He followed this with smashed avocado and hibiscus gravlax-style salmon on artisan toast served in a fresh, velvety rosehead inspired by his country walk. Finally, he finished with his own novel take on energy balls — or rather, small but mighty energy cubes molded from dark chocolate. These he filled with oats and peanut butter infused with orange zest and floral notes — a treat he likes to make for the crew from time to time.
Ten minutes with Agouros and you instantly understand where he is coming from — he is a feeder. He doesn’t just love to cook, he loves to cook for people. And when he has no owner or charter guests to cook for, he cooks for his crew. “They love me,” he jokes.
Although he likes to use the finest ingredients, he's just as happy working with simple ones and is very aware of sustainability and food waste, a mindset shaped by years spent working in restaurants.
He began his career in Saint-Étienne, France, before working his way up through the kitchens of Lyon, the country’s culinary capital, eventually opening his own restaurant with a friend in 2018 serving refined, farm-to-table bistro cuisine. However running a profitable restaurant proved challenging, particularly in the wake of Covid and when local authority pedestrianized his street leading to a decline in customers.
To supplement his income, he began taking seasonal yacht jobs on the recommendation of a captain friend. He then slowly handed over the reins to his business partner, teaching him to cook and officially closed the restaurant last year.
His cooking style is rooted in classic, old-school Michelin-starred gastronomy. “Not the newer style, but the traditional approach,” he explains. “I try to bring a fresh perspective to classic cuisine such as the dishes of Auguste Escoffier, one of the most famous chefs of the early part of the last century: stews, stuffed fish, stuffed poultry ....”
He also loves making desserts, “but not the trompe-l’œil style — the kind where a lemon looks like a lemon but isn’t. Everyone is doing that. I just want to create the perfect bite, so when people put it in their mouth, they close their eyes and say, ‘Wow!’”
He has no desire to return to restaurant kitchens. “I can now do everything I want and be really creative.”
“Also, look at my amazing view!” he adds. “I have a very big window in my galley and every day the view changes. Plus, I come from the sea. My father is from an island in Greece, and the sea has always been a big part of my life.”
His Greek grandmother first sparked his love of cooking, but it is a passion that has run through his family for generations. “My mother was a great cook, and so were my father, my great-grandmother and my father’s mother — even her father was a top chef,” he says proudly.
It is no surprise, then, that his signature dish carries a Greek influence. “Stuffed vine leaves cooked in lamb stock — but not many people like it, so if I have to choose something else, I’d say risotto or arancini.”
He enjoys the pace of charter work, and Centurion is a busy charter yacht, which suits him well. “I like charter because it’s like having my own restaurant on the boat. The guests change every week, so I can try something new all the time.”
After years working in kitchens, he feels he has finally found his place. “For the first time, I feel like I’m living properly. I love cooking and seeing the world and now I can bring all my passions together. I never want it to stop.”
Last year, he was offered the chance to become head chef of three restaurants in Thailand. “I spoke to the CEO and said I’m sorry, I love my life too much now to say yes. I loved running my own restaurant, but it felt restrictive.”
“Even though my galley is very small on this boat, I can truly enjoy my work for the first time. So I’m going to continue this — and, of course, I really want to keep improving!”