Oscar Monterroso - Personal Chef

My client should expect a fine dining experience in there own home. People tell me Iam very personable and easy to work with. Theres nothing I love more then cooking and serving for my clients. I treat all my clients with respect as if they were VIP in a restaurant. They should expect delicous food. I do the shopping, cooking, and cleanup all they have to do is sit and enjoy! Most people have never expierienced a personal chef cooking for them so it will be a memorable expierience.

With over ten years of experience in the restaurant industry, I have never been more dedicated and passionate about producing high quality, creative and innovative dishes for my customers. Together with my clients and food personalities I try to identify the emerging tastes, trends, and flavors that will shape our food experience.
I have worked from the west coast to the east coast in restaurants such as Caf Central (El paso) to Mediterraneo(Federal Hill Rhode Island). I studied at The Art Institute of Las Vegas to receive a certificate in Culinary Arts. I have also taken the ServeSafe food handler program which covers five key areas

• Basic Food Safety
• Personal Hygiene
• Cross-contamination & Allergens
• Time & Temperature
• Cleaning & Sanitation.

If you were a customer, what do you wish you knew about your trade? Any inside secrets to share?

I would like to know what the average hourly rate is so that I'am not getting over charged. Also if the person has good references. If I were to share an inside secret on my trade it would be that cooking seems easy, but it is a lot of work and most people dont know exactly how much of our time we have put in our profession. I used to work 68 hrs. a week untill I decided to be a personal chef. Our recipes have been shared from restaurants all over the world and our signature dishes have been perfected.

What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

I would suggest you figure out your budget and then decide what kind of food you would want your personal chef too cook for you. Some people have allergies and have personal diet restrictions such as vegan or gluten free. You would want a chef that specializes in those certain areas. I myself am a gourmet chef that specializes in Italian Cuisine. I would be perfect for a party of four or eight where you would want too really impress your guests.....or maybe even a romantic dinner:) You should definately do some research. And last you should see that they have their ServeSafe certificate which shows they know how too handle food properly.

Tell us about a recent job you did that you are particularly proud of.

Well I recently did a catering job for a church out in Cheshire CT, called Calvary Life Worship Center. There was about 30 people from the church. All pastors and elders with wives. It was a blessing to serve people from the church who are not very familiar with gourmet cuisine. I served mixed greens with crumbled goat cheese, dried pomegranate, roasted walnuts, and diced red onion in a white balsamic reduction....Poached Chicken wrapped in prosciutto stuffed with Italian sausage(fresh herbs) than sliced into medallions...Overall everyone was happy and it was great to help out the church.

How did you decide to get in your line of work?

I was fifteen when I first started working as a bus boy at Papa Marc Bistro. Since then I never left the field. I moved up to waiter and then one day decided that I wanted to learn how to make pizza. My best friend Mario opened up Marra's restaurant and I worked my way up. Twice a week making pizza and four times a week in the Pantry station. Before you know it I was sauteing Gnocci pesto and making Chicken Sorrentino:) There was no turning back...I thank God I stuck to the restaurant industry. There's nothing I love more than making people happy through the dishes I put out.