Brad Parker, Hospitality CEO and founder of Parker Hospitality in Chicago, had an idea to put an Italian restaurant in an empty prime spot in the city’s West Loop. Then he ate at Principote Mykonos on the Greek island.

“I was blown away,” he said. “It was this huge restaurant that was packed, and the food was special, but also simple and fresh. It really sparked this thing in me, where I knew this is what I want to do,” he told The Chicago Tribune.

He brought back more than the menu for Nisos Mediterranean, a two-story, 9,000-square-foot restaurant set to open July 8. He brought back the chef too, Avgeria Stapaki, who gave him the best meal he had.

“It wasn’t a difficult decision,” Stapaki said. “I came to Chicago because America has no limit for my career. This is going to be my restaurant.”

Don’t call it Greek. “I’ve worked all over the Mediterranean,” Stapaki said. “I’ve worked in Italy, Spain, France, and Greece, and I want to bring in all of these experiences.” But the fish will come from the Aegean Sea – in Greece.