Magdalena Daria Gessler, known throughout Poland simply as Magda Gessler, is a restaurateur, television personality, painter, and author who has become the undisputed queen of Polish gastronomy.
With her flamboyant style, razor-sharp opinions, and decades of experience, she shot to nationwide fame as the fearless host of Kuchenne rewolucje and later as a permanent judge on MasterChef Polska.
Quick Facts
- Full Name: Magdalena Daria Gessler
- Stage Name: Magda Gessler
- Born: 10, July 1953
- Age: 73 years old
- Birthplace: Komorów, Poland
- Nationality: Polish
- Occupation: Restaurateur, Television Personality, Painter, Author
- Height: 1.71 m
- Parents: Mirosław Ikonowicz and Olga Borkowska
- Siblings: Piotr Ikonowicz
- Spouse: Volkhart Müller (m. 1982–1987)
- Partner: Waldemar Kozerawski
- Children: Tadeusz Müller, Lara Gessler
- Relationship: Dating
- Net Worth: $12 million
Early Life and Education
Magdalena Daria Gessler was born on 10 July 1953 in Komorów, near Warsaw, into a cultured, cosmopolitan family. Her father, Mirosław Ikonowicz, was a Polish journalist of Russian-Italian descent, and her mother, Olga Borkowska, came from an old Polish-Russian aristocratic family.
She has a younger brother, politician and activist Piotr Ikonowicz. Due to her father’s diplomatic postings, she spent part of her childhood in Spain, Portugal, Cuba, and Brazil.
She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Madrid in 1976 with a degree in painting. Ethnically Polish, she also has Russian, Italian, and distant Jewish ancestry; she was raised non-religious and does not publicly practise any faith.
Career
Magdalena Gessler started her professional life in the late 1970s in Madrid, where she and her first husband opened several successful restaurants. After returning to Poland at the end of the communist era, she quickly became one of the pioneers of modern Polish gastronomy.
In the early 1990s she took over the historic U Fukiera restaurant in Warsaw’s Old Town—the oldest operating restaurant in Europe—and turned it into a landmark of refined Polish cuisine.
Over the years she opened a string of acclaimed venues including Polka, Słodki… Słony, Ale Wino, and Zielona Gęś, each known for lavish interiors and bold flavours.
Her life changed dramatically in 2010 when TVN cast her as the host of Kuchenne rewolucje. Armed with her trademark candour and dramatic flair, she began travelling across Poland rescuing failing restaurants, revamping menus, and often delivering blistering critiques that made for irresistible television.
The programme, now in its 28th season, remains one of the highest-rated shows in the country. Two years later she joined MasterChef Polska as a permanent judge, further solidifying her position as Poland’s leading culinary authority.
Magdalena Gessler still personally oversees an expanding restaurant empire while regularly launching new concepts, publishing cookbooks (including the bestseller Kuchnia moja pasja), and exhibiting her paintings.
She is widely credited with reviving pride in traditional Polish dishes, elevating everyday ingredients, and inspiring thousands of young Poles to pursue careers in hospitality. Few personalities have had such a lasting impact on the nation’s culinary identity.
Social Media
- Instagram Handle: @magdagessler_official
- Facebook Handle: Magda Gessler Oficial
Personal Life
Magdalena Gessler was married to German journalist Volkhart Müller from 1982 until his sudden death in a car accident in 1987; they had one son, Tadeusz Müller.
Since 1999 she has been in a long-term relationship with neurosurgeon and businessman Waldemar Kozerawski, with whom she has a daughter, Lara Gessler.
Both children are actively involved in the family’s restaurant business—Lara as a successful restaurateur and influencer, Tadeusz as a chef and television presenter.
Net Worth
Magdalena Gessler has an estimated net worth of $12 million. Her fortune comes mainly from her portfolio of high-end restaurants and cafés across Poland, lucrative long-term contracts with TVN for Kuchenne rewolucje and MasterChef Polska, cookbook sales, brand collaborations, and real-estate holdings in Warsaw and Italy.