Phillip Buttacavoli

General Manager

Before embarking on a hospitality career that has taken him to phenomenal restaurants, Phillip Buttacavoli’s passion for the industry began as a teenager working at a neighborhood restaurant in Huntington, Long Island, NY. Following high school, Phillip attended the Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island where he specialized in Food Service & Restaurant Management.

Phillip stayed in his stomping grounds of New York to accept his first hospitality position with Patina Restaurant Group at Rock Center Café before being promoted to Director General Manager of Rockefeller Center’s Rink Bar/Summer Garden. After seven years, he moved to the Altamarea Group as the General Manager of Osteria Morini where he continued to lead in hospitality and service. 

In March of 2022, Phillip accepted the General Manager position at Chef John Fraser’s Aegean restaurant Iris, after being moved by Chef John’s passion for honoring both Greek and Turkish cultures. Phillip felt it was his responsibility to deliver Chef John’s vision to both guests and staff through an ethos of superlative hospitality.

Phillip understands that being a restaurant manager is not easy – there are many moving parts, people and personalities. His mission is to synthesize knowledge from previous positions and fuse the cuisine of the Aegean and its unique wine and spirits to make IRIS the favorite restaurant of NYC.