Taking It PersonallyPersonally A career as a personal chef may take away the crazy hours of a “normal” job, but not the excitement and fulfillment chefs crave. B Y J ODY S HEE ne day four years ago, Dale Pyle, CEC, of Orlando, Fla., came home from his restaurant job and admitted to him- self that he just couldn’t take it anymore. He’d started working in restaurants at age 13, and Oclimbed his way up to executive chef and then food-and-beverage director. But his career path had taken him into administration and away from what he loved most—cooking. Pyle searched the Internet for other culinary- career options and came across the term “per- sonal chef,” something he’d never heard of. Further research led him to the American Personal Chef Association (APCA), San Diego, which helped him get set up. “I was amazed at how easy it was to get into being a personal chef,” he says. “I just loved it. I got a few big clients right off the bat.” He found he could be as slow or as busy as he wanted to be, and there was plenty of work. It also allowed him time to pursue a secondary culi- nary career as an instructor at Orlando Culinary Academy. His story is similar to that of Candy Wallace, founder and executive director of the APCA. After years of working on a line in a restaurant and as a corporate executive chef, she became disenchant- ed. “Why don’t I have a life? Why am I always in this restaurant? Why am I always working nights, weekends and holidays?” she asked herself. She became a personal chef, conducting assessments of clients’ meal desires and needs, Rob Corey, CEC, has built his business around high-end dinner parties in people’s homes, an experience he describes as, “a show. It’s great the- developing their menus, shopping, cooking in ater.” their homes and packaging and storing the meals 12 • www.acfchefs.org The National Culinary Review • June 2006 LEARN! Become a Successful Personal Chef for them. After training a number of says they enjoy the challenge of creat- people as personal chefs, she found- ing unique menus, playing with ingre- As a culinary professional, ed the APCA in 1996. dients and setting their own hours. your back of the house skills Wallace says there are basically six “And the fact that it’s allowed us to are tops, but what do you types of clients who use personal build a business that represents our know about starting up and chefs: single, young career profession- personalities and beliefs, and it bene- operating a legitimate, success- ful business as a personal chef? als; married professionals with or fits other people,” she says. without children, but with no time to Jessica Leibovitch of San Diego Blend your culinary skills with cook; people with a medical problem, turned to the personal-chef business our PROVEN business train- such as diabetes; professional athletes when she was 24, after working for ing systems, business models, or other high-profile celebrities; high-end catering companies. “They templates, mentoring support, seniors; and those who just want fine could get cheap labor from Mexico, so tips and techniques to assure dining that they don’t have to cook. the pay wasn’t good,” she says of the your successful entry into The number of personal chefs in catering business in San Diego. owning and operating your the United States is now about “People sent articles to me on personal own personal chef business. 10,000, and Wallace estimates that it chefs, and I felt it would be something will double in five years. I’d be good at. I could customize my STARTYour Personal Chef food, and be my own boss.” Career at the TOP as a The allure Leibovitch says it was tough get- personal chef with the.. One day, partners Dennis Nosko ting clients at first, because people and Christine Robinson of thought personal chefs were only for American Personal Chef Lexington, Mass., received an e-mail the rich and famous. “Now it’s Institute & Association asking if they were satisfied with changed a lot,” she says. “My clients their careers. mostly aren’t the richest people. # Tops in Training Programs “The e-mail looked like spam— They are just busy people who want # Tops in Ongoing Support something we’d never open—but to eat well, and have no time to # Tops in Internet Visibility Dennis clicked on it,” Robinson cook fresh meals.” # Tops in National Media says. “A member of the APCA sent She loves feeling appreciated by Presence it, and it said, ‘If you’re tired of long her clients. “Unless you’re an execu- # Tops in Membership benefits hours, you need to check this out,’ tive chef at an amazing restaurant, and resources with a link to the APCA Web site.” people don’t know who has been # 2003 IACP International Nosko, who has two culinary cooking their food,” she says. “And "Award of Excellence" degrees, had worked as an execu- with catering big-name clients, I was # Certification Partnership tive chef for many years. “The hours in the kitchen all day beginning at 5 with American Culinary and lack of creativity were driving a.m. The people working the parties Federation him crazy,” Robinson says. “I was in were temporary employees, but they student finance, and I hated it.” were the ones getting the credit and SUCCEED! They scrutinized the industry for appreciation. Now it’s nice that I’m several days, and wrote a list of pros appreciated and they like what I do. STAY at the TOP with APCA and cons. “The pros so outweighed It feels good.” Family Support,Top Online the cons. We couldn’t find a bad Presence, and Continuing angle,” Robinson says, adding that Making it work Education Opportunities initially she was just going to do the After getting started in the personal- marketing, but then became chef world, some have customized involved as a personal chef. their businesses. John Deatcher, who Now Nosko and Robinson operate operates Foodini’s Catering and A Fresh Endeavor Personal Chef Personal Chef Service based in Asbury Service, with a base of 22 regular Park, N.J., discovered that his New clients, from singles to married profes- York clients had tiny kitchens that sionals, for whom they cook a week’s were difficult to work from. So he to a month’s worth of meals. Robinson rented a commercial kitchen, and now www.personalchef.com 800-644-8389 [email protected] The National Culinary Review • June 2006 www.acfchefs.org • 13 brings the meals already prepared to sonal-chef industry. A few days later, the clients. in a conversation with a real estate He is still considered a personal agent, he mentioned personal chefs, chef rather than a caterer, because and she asked him if he and Bryan the meals are personalized to the would cook for her the following client, says Wallace. week. He called Wallace and asked Deatcher also takes on special- her to overnight information. occasion dinner parties, and he sells “We quickly put a program together, gift certificates that realtors buy for and started the next day,” Davis says. clients or employees buy for their Now, he trains other personal chefs as bosses during the holidays. He says APCA’s East Coast regional manager, his next goal is to expand his business and also owns a cooking school. by hiring someone to do the cooking For those interested in the per- while he works more on marketing. sonal-chef business, Davis suggests In the Denver area and in Boulder, reading everything they can about A chance conversation with someone Colo., Rob Corey, CEC, is well- it. He advises them to visit who wanted a chef-cooked meal in a pri- known in high-society circles as a vate home encouraged Jim Davis, (r.), www.personalchef.com to find chefs personal chef, and he has built his and son, Bryan, to enter the personal- in their area. “Call them,” he says. business, The French Manner, around chef business. “Buy them coffee, and find out how high-end dinner parties in people’s they are doing. Some make nice six- homes. In addition, he teaches classes in as a restaurant chef. So one day, figure incomes.” in classic French cuisine and how to as he was playing around on the Though it depends on how hard run a restaurant at the Art Institute of Internet, Davis perked up when he you work and the area you are in, Colorado in Denver. came across information on the per- Wallace estimates the average annu- He advertises his personal-chef al income of a personal chef is business on his Web site, and some- For Further Study $50,000 to $70,000. “Those who add times buys an ad in a local magazine. catering do better,” she says. But he says most of his business • In a partnership between the The person who makes the best comes from word-of-mouth, and he American Culinary Federation and personal chef is honest, a people estimates that about 35% of his work the American Personal Chef person and works well alone, Davis comes from repeat customers. Association, certification for per- says. “You have to have professional For large dinner parties, Corey hires sonal chefs is available on two lev- cooking skills. You don’t have to be els: personal certified chef (PCC) extra help. “I have a staff of 30 peo- a culinary-school graduate, but it’s and personal certified executive ple, all contract labor.