Become A Yacht Chef Blog
People picture a yacht chef plating one beautiful dinner a day. Let me walk you through what a charter day actually looks like.
5:00am — Coffee, then breakfast prep
Up before the guests. Fresh pastries or bread on, fruit platters, juices, and whatever cooked breakfast has been requested — plus a f...
On land, your produce arrives at the back door at 7am. At sea, keeping a five-star kitchen supplied anywhere on earth is half the job — and honestly, one of my favourite parts of it.
The golden rule: plan backwards from the itinerary
Before a trip I'm studying the route like a navigator. Where can...
Every land chef who steps into a galley has the same moment: where's the rest of the kitchen? Here's what cooking at sea actually demands — and the tricks that make it work.
The space
A galley on a 30m yacht can be smaller than a food truck, and you're producing tasting menus out of it. Every cent...
You're cooking for people who eat at the best restaurants on earth as a matter of routine. Here's what they actually expect — and what they remember.
Everything starts with the preference sheet
Before guests step aboard, you receive their preference sheet: likes, dislikes, allergies, diets, favour...
I've worked both — sail and motor, 15 to 88 metres, private and charter — so here's an honest insight into what the choice actually means for the person cooking.
The galley
Motor yachts win on space, full stop. Bigger galleys, proper cool rooms and dry stores, serious equipment — on a 60 metre I'v...
How to get ahead of your guests and get as much mise en place ready!
Pictured ~ Fermented and dehydrated tomato leather prepared before an upcoming charter, topped with olive oil pearls, balsamic air and micro basil.
The one thing this industry has taught me above all else is to expect the unexp...
How to manage an easy-going, family-run yacht or a busy charter vessel.
Welcome to your ultimate dream and worst nightmare.
Everyone always says how lucky a yacht chef is — getting to head off to local markets, browse beautiful produce stalls and "wander about." And yes, in that sense we are luc...
I'm going to give you an honest insight into both options — from someone who has actually worked on both.
Pictured ~ My first superyacht job on the 30m M/Y EnCore, anchored off the famous Monuriki Island in Fiji.
So far in my career I've worked on a couple of dive boats (23m–35m), a sailing cata...
