The owner of Marathia in Tinos, Marinos Souranis, made the sea his second home from a young age. He learned all the secrets of fishing from his uncles who had their own boats, and he lived near the largest fish market on the island. So, it was a logical step when, in 2002 he opened Marathia taverna, in Agios Fokas, Tinos. Marinos was the chef, and he and his mother worked together in the kitchen. The menu mainly featured fresh fish and seafood, which were complemented by dishes cooked following traditional recipes from Tinos.

Over time, Marinos realized his dream which was to make Marathia the leading fresh fish restaurant in Tinos. He created the team he needed and focused on evolving and enriching recipes which have been a fundamental part of the Tinos diet for hundreds of years, adding modern “notes” to revitalise them. His focus has always been on foraging and securing a supply of raw ingredients – such as vegetables, cheeses, herbs and legumes – from Tinos and nearby Cyclades islands. Also, the observance of the principles of minimizing loss, as well as sustainability. Additionally, keeping to principals of reducing waste and working sustainably have always been vital to the business’s operations.

In 2010, Marinos Souranis began research on fish ageing and curing, a technique that had not been used in Greece, or in many other places, until then.

In 2018, during his R&D, he was contacted by Alessandro Cuomo, owner of the Italian company Stagionello which specializes in building maturation chambers. The company had just built the Pesciugatore, a chamber for ageing salmon. Mr. Cuomo was interested in Marinos’ experiments and sent him a chamber so that he could help, among others, in the further development of the chamber.

Marinos gradually achieved the results he was seeking and the Marathia menu was enriched – and continues to be enriched as the research never stops – with recipes based on the fish that come out of the ageing chambers, having undergone wet or dry ageing. In fact, Marinos has also written a soon-to-be-published detailed book on fish ageing.