The path that led her here started with Randy. His family roots trace back to a small town near Napoli, Italy — some of his family still lives there today. As a kid working nights in a family-owned Greek restaurant, there was nothing he loved more at the end of a long shift than a good gyro and fries. So when Despina began coming into his cash and carry every morning — hand-selecting her own ingredients, and bringing her tzatziki, hummus, and three-bean salad for him to try — he recognized it immediately. This was the real thing.

But it wasn't until Randy introduced Jessie to Despina and her food that he knew they were headed somewhere beyond lunch.

Jessie brings 20 years of restaurant experience to everything she does at Despina's — she's worked at every level of this industry and knows what it takes to do it right. She's in the kitchen every day, cooking everything from scratch. She's the face you see at the counter. She runs the catering events personally. This is her place, and it shows.

When Despina was ready to step back, she didn't hand her kitchen to a stranger. She spent a two months cooking alongside Jessie — passing down every recipe, every technique, every standard. Nothing was written down and forgotten. Everything was learned by hand. That's the only way either of them would have had it.

Today, Despina's Mediterranean Taste is still the same restaurant Binghamton has loved since 2008 — the same Souvlaki, the same Greek Salad, the same homemade dressing. What's changed is who you'll find behind the counter: someone who has loved this food her whole life, and who lights up every time she gets to share it with someone new.