Find a Private Chef in Santa Cruz

Event-based rate: For a group of 10 people, the average cost of hiring a private chef through a platform like Yhangry is around $1100

Hourly rate: For occasional assistance or a specific event, a private chef can cost between $40 and $60 per hour. This rate usually covers cooking and meal preparation, but not travel or accommodation.

Daily rate: For a chef to be present over multiple days, such as during a holiday, the daily rate can range from $300 to $3000. This rate typically includes the chef's time for cooking, meal preparation, and cleanup

Full-time salary: For a full-time private chef, the median annual salary ranges from $40k to $80k. This depends on the chef's experience and the range of services they provide. Michelin-trained private chefs working for UHNW households will demand annual salaries higher than $150k.

Here is how yhangry works —

1. Send a request on the website - this includes details about your event (date, location, number of guests etc).
2. Your request will be sent to all chefs who match your criteria. If you are looking for a particular chef, you can browse chefs in your area and message them directly. This is preferred by those who are looking to re-book the same chef.
3. Interested chefs will respond to you with a quote, which entails a suggested menu and a price.
4. Compare different quotes and chat with the chefs. All our chefs are happy to accommodate changes to the menu to make it perfect for you so don’t worry about asking for changes. You can call chefs via the platform to discuss finer details over the phone.
5. To secure the chef we recommend that you make payment whilst finalising the menu. Once you have paid, your chefs calendar will be blocked so no other client can book your chef.
6. The chef will arrive at your event location around 2 hours before the start time. However this is usually agreed and well communicated between chef and client.
7. The chef will bring the groceries, cook, serve and clean up.

The cost of a private chef booked on yhangry covers the chef’s time, cost of ingredients, travel to your location, serving, and cleanup. If the event is for a bigger group the chef might also include the cost of waitstaff and sous chefs to deliver a seamless experience. This depends on the personal capacity of the chef and is asking about when booking.

Our chefs mostly bring their own freshly-sourced ingredients and premium-quality meats to prepare scrumptious meals. You can provide your own ingredients if you have particular requirements that the chef might not be able to sources. However, our private chefs mostly bring their own freshly-sourced ingredients and  premium-quality meats to prepare scrumptious meals.

By default, our chefs do not bring cooking equipment. They will use the kitchen equipment available in your home. If you are hosting your event at a rented venue, such as a holiday home or event space please be specific in your communications with the chef about what kitchen facilities are available. Most private chefs have their own equipment and will be able to provide things as long as they are told beforehand.

General T&Cs related to our gift cards:

1. The owner of the gift card is entitled to purchase from www.yhangry.com
2. A yhangry gift card has no expiry date and is valid forever. 
3. All gift cards can be used only once, and must be redeemed for its full value. No unused balance can be claimed.
4. Gift cards cannot be combined with any marketing promotion.
5. This gift card cannot be exchanged for cash.
6. We reserve the right to reject any gift card that we suspect may have been used or tampered with.
7. If the total amount payable at checkout is greater than the gift card value, you must pay the balance amount.

No, our chefs do not typically provide plates, cutlery, or crockery. However, some chefs may offer this service if requested. Please explicitly mention your requirement for crockery, cutlery, etc., when placing your request. This ensures that chefs who offer this service can include it in their quote, and those who do not can refrain from quoting.

We have new chefs joining our platform everyday – just drop us a note at info@yhangry.com to see if we are able to accommodate your request.

We recommend that you place your order as early as possible to secure a chef for your event and to avoid disappointment, especially for Saturdays and around holidays. However, we can often accommodate last minute bookings that are made as little as 24 hours in advance - bare in mind that you will not have as many different chefs to choose from compared with planning the event 3 weeks in advance.

Everything will be cooked on site, but depending on the menu, your chef might prepare some mise-en-places to improve the experience on the day.

1. Pay in full
2. Pay 10% deposit — this feature is only available if the event date is more than 5 weeks away. The remaining balance is automatically charged to the card on file 1 month prior to the event date.
3. Split the Bill — this feature is only available if the event date is more than 5 weeks away. While placing the booking you pay for yourself and then we will send you an email with the payment link that you can share with the remaining guests. All payments from guests need to come in latest by 1 month prior to event date

Yes, the chef’s quoted price includes cleanup. For small groups, the chef will typically handle kitchen cleanup and clear plates between courses. For larger groups, the chef will clean the kitchen, but you may need a waiter to help with serving and clearing plates between courses. For groups of more than 8 people we recommend asking the chef if they will be delivering the service on their own or bringing a helper.

No, the chef does not set the table. This is ideally done before the chef arrives so that you won’t have to disturb the chef during the cooking, especially if space in the kitchen is limited. If you specified with the chef and any waitstaff to help with the table setting then they will be setting the table.

Yes - the chef will clean up all equipment used and leave your kitchen as it was at the start.