Chef Chris LaVecchia was one of those ambitious culinary professionals who made the leap to private cooking, though he discovered along the way that working for yourself is anything but easy.
LaVecchia grew up in a large Italian household where holidays and family gatherings overflowed with good food and good company. Sunday afternoons were about family getting together for a meal of pasta with sauce, all the meats, and really good Italian bread. Growing up LaVecchia helped out and developed an interest in cooking.
In college LaVecchia struggled to figure out what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. He knew sitting behind a desk just wasn’t for him. One day the young student received a brochure in the mail for culinary school and a light went on. “I was finally interested in school again, and learning something that I had a passion for,” he says.
Before he was a private chef LaVecchia worked at several commercial kitchens and held a position as a corporate chef, where he served breakfast and lunch during regular business hours and had the weekends off to relax, or take on his own gigs and build a name for himself. After a while, though, LaVecchia decided to venture out on his own. This time he wanted to establish his own brand, with the freedom to develop up-scale menus, tailoring them to his clients’ preferences. As a private chef LaVecchia creates new menus using fresh, premium, seasonal ingredients, and what is available. He learns new skills and refines old techniques. Whether preparing his own dishes or reimagined classics, Chef Chris’ feedback does not lack in 5 Star Reviews.
Alas, the life of a private chef is not all fun and games. Like any occupation it has its challenges. The variety of kitchens LaVecchia encounters might lack the space and appliances found in the commercial world. And his hours can be unpredictable, as clients often hire private chefs for weddings, weekend celebrations, or events that do not match the typical 40-hour work week. Fortunately for LaVecchia, the pros always seemed to outweigh the cons. He points out he’s free to make his own schedule and seize every opportunity that comes his way — a freedom not always possible in the commercial world, or any full-time position for that matter. For him, the look on a client’s face when they exclaim his food was “the best experience” or “the meal of their life” is worth the unpredictability of a crazy schedule.
Chef Chris’ passion for cooking, his creative freedom, and the chance to constantly learn new things are what continue to fuel his work. “It’s not just a plate of good tasting food; every chef should be making good food,” he says. “It’s an experience and memory you give them, how you make someone feel, and how they remember their special occasion. We are not just feeding people, we are nourishing them.”
He advises chefs interested in the private field to really examine where their passions lie. “You can’t just like it or want to be a chef because you see celebrity chefs on TV and it looks fun,” he says. “Yes, you can make it fun, but it can also burn you out and wear you down. You work long days and nights, and when everyone else is spending their weekend off, enjoying friends and family, you are putting your own family aside to make someone else’s day special. Most people can’t handle that … if they do not truly love what they are doing.”
For Chef Chris, going private was the right choice. He relishes having clients who turn into close friends, traveling weekly to different cities, and cooking for new people. “It keeps [life] exciting and adventurous,” he says. “I love interacting with people. Sometimes they ask lots of questions and want to pick my brain… and then they learn something that they didn’t know before, either an interesting technique or just little tips and tricks. It’s exciting for them and it’s exciting for me.”
Chef Chris LaVecchia has worked in the hospitality industry for over two and a half decades, working under some of the best chefs inside some of the best restaurants, catering halls and country clubs, including Michelin Starred Chefs. Now he brings his experience and passion for cooking into people’s homes for private dinner parties and cocktail parties, brunches and catering.
