I first found Chef Mark Tafoya online when I was looking for a private chef to celebrate my wife's birthday, and the experience exceeded every expectation. Chef Mark is Yale educated, incredibly knowledgeable, and clearly experienced in a wide range of cuisines, but what really stands out is how easy, thoughtful, and personal he makes the entire process.
He can do anything you can think of, French, Italian, Japanese, Indian, and on and on. We told him the type of dinner we were interested in, and he came back with several options for each course. We were able to choose and adjust the menu until it felt exactly right, and then he took care of the rest. He ordered what he needed ahead of time, went to specialty markets the day of the dinner for the freshest and highest-quality ingredients, brought any supplies he needed, worked smoothly in our kitchen, served a beautiful meal, and cleaned up absolutely everything before leaving. The kitchen was sparkling when he was done.
Chef Mark is also just a genuinely kind person. He takes real time and effort to design the menu around the specific event and the person being celebrated, which made the dinner feel far more personal than simply hiring someone to cook. He is warm, engaging, and a wonderful host, with great stories and a clear love of Broadway, which added to the intimacy and fun of the night.
Final Menu for anyone interested: A tomato and basil tart with shaved Gruyère, baby spinach, walnut and orange salad with raspberry vinaigrette, steak au poivre with brandy cream sauce, and nectarine puff pastry tarts. Each course felt thoughtful, seasonal, and restaurant-quality, but the best part was getting to enjoy it privately at home and not worry about cleaning up after.
Chef Mark also left us with leftovers from every course, which was such a great bonus, we got to have the entire meal over again. We enjoyed the experience so much that we later hired him again for our 10th anniversary. For anyone looking for an intimate dinner at home, amazing food, and completely professional service from start to finish, Chef Mark is an easy recommendation. read more