Atlanta Personal Chef Service boasts an ever-growing team of in-home chefs. Our team is made up of highly skilled personal chefs who have a passion for cooking quality meals and providing excellent service. Our hand-selected chefs all have culinary degrees and several years of professional cooking experience, many having worked in fine-dining restaurants or five star hotels. Once hired to work for Atlanta Personal Chef Service, all chefs are required to undergo training with a lead chef before working solo. We are very careful to match our chefs to your needs, for service we guarantee you’ll love.

Amy grew up in Washington, D.C. and moved to Atlanta in 2004. Growing up, her family ate dinner together every evening, and as the owner and founder of Atlanta Personal Chef Service, Amy is focused on bringing families back to the dinner table through healthy, home-cooked meals. Amy has grown Atlanta Personal Chef Service’s operations since 2011 to include plated dinner parties and full-service catered in-home and off-site events. Amy has served as an adjunct faculty member at the Art Institute of Atlanta’s culinary program and is currently an active board member of Atlanta’s EO Accelerator program. Amy’s corporate background is in both finance and healthcare, and she holds a bachelor degree from Emory’s Goizueta Business School and an MBA from Georgia Tech’s Scheller College of Business. Family dinners are still a tradition in her household, and she carries fond memories of dinner as a time to relax, unwind and reconnect.

Deborah was born and raised in Atlanta. She stayed in town for college, majoring in Hospitality Administration at Georgia State University, but after graduating, she moved to New York City. Her first job after college was at Le Parker Meridien Hotel as Room Service Assistant Manager. She moved on to Event Manager with Starr Restaurants, and then worked for Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse in New York for six years.

In 2015, Deborah and her husband moved back to Atlanta to be closer to family. Before joining our team at Atlanta Personal Chef Service, she worked with Fifth Group Restaurants, overseeing their group dining sales team and eight Atlanta locations.

Deborah’s love of food informs her choice of career. “I love to eat everything!” she shares. “I like to be very open-minded and exploratory in my dining experiences. I think living in NYC for a decade definitely helped feed that desire.” Since moving back to Atlanta, Deborah’s favorite restaurant dish she’s had is the curry soup with tossed noodle at Food Terminal.

Deborah spends her free time with her husband and two children, usually somewhere outside, like the park, pool or mountains. She also has her Level 1 certification from the Court of Masters Sommeliers, so she enjoys learning about new wines and drinking it.

Marquetta (you can call her “Q” for short) was born in Atlanta and grew up in Memphis. Holding a master’s degree from The University of Tennessee at Knoxville and over 20 years in social services, and a passion and firm belief in the power of family, she moved back to Atlanta in 2012 to start Safe Harbor International Ministries, a 501(c)(3) non-profit that provides family restoration. While developing her nonprofit, Marquetta launched her catering career with Bold Events, where she was quickly recognized for her talent in the hospitality industry, earning an Event Manager position overseeing many of their large and small. She coordinated the flow of the events from the beginning of the event to the end, working closely with venue managers, their staff, and all front and back of house catering staff as well. Marquetta also plans large-scale community events, including galas, workshops, staff and volunteer recognition dinners for her non-profit work. From starting as a server with the Atlanta Personal Chef Service team in early 2017, Marquetta is now planning elegant in-home events for our clients, ensuring the process is smooth and flawless from the initial touch-point through to the post-event follow-up. In her spare time, Marquetta enjoys exploring Georgia with her family, visiting unique historical homes and restaurants, discovering new nature trails, fishing, and blogging.

Nia grew up on the most eastern point of the Big Island of Hawaii, eating fresh fish and also produce from the family’s garden. Inspired by the culinary world, she enrolled in Cape Fear Community College where she earned her culinary degree, graduating with honors and Dean’s list status. Under the leadership of Ash Aziz, owner of Circa restaurant group, Nia sought opportunities to learn all aspects of restaurant operations. She was part of the opening of Osteria Cicchetti, Ash’s Italian concept restaurant, where she learned all stations in the kitchen. She was responsible for, among other things, the daily soups, house made gnocchi, butternut squash and mushroom raviolis. She later transitioned into the pastry department to refine her baking and pastry skills working under Executive Pastry Chef Debora Creamer. When Nia’s doing the cooking, her favorite foods to prepare are fresh fish with seasonal produce, fresh pasta, and wild game. And when she goes out to eat in Atlanta, she raves about the Iberian Pig for their unique tapas. The rabbit empanadas and wild pork sausage meatballs with manchego are her favorites!

When Nia isn’t cooking, she loves exploring the outdoors with her husband and their dog. They’ll explore nearby hiking trails or canoe on the Chattahoochee or a nearby lake. She also likes thrift shopping for antiques to repurpose into great vintage finds. When asked about her cooking, she shares “I respect the process and experience of being able to take something from nature and respectfully use it to nourish our bodies.” Her love and appreciation for food make her a strong leader on the Atlanta Personal Chef Service team.

Chef Tai grew up in Long Island, New York. In high school he participated in a culinary fellowship program with a professional chef and fell in love with the culinary arts. In 2002, Tai moved to Charleston, South Carolina to attend culinary school at Johnson & Wales University. He earned an associate degree in culinary arts and a bachelor’s degree in food service management. As a student, he traveled to Belgium to study food research and beer and wine production. He also visited France to study wine production and international hotel management.

Early in his career Tai worked at the Mint Julep Bistro in downtown Columbia, South Carolina, and later spent a year as a baker for the Charleston Place Hotel. He came to Atlanta to work with Richard Blais on his wildly successful Flip Burger concepts. Working his way up in the kitchen, Tai was eventually promoted to executive chef of the newly opening Flip Burger in Birmingham, AL. Tai cites Chef Jason McClure as the most influential chef in his career. McClure inspired Tai through his passion for food and for serving people. Under his tutelage, Tai learned molecular gastronomy, flavor building, and flavor pairing on a chemistry level.

Chef Tai loves cooking Thai food, lasagna, manicotti, vegetable tien, osso bucco, and many other dishes. He loves eating pad Thai, sushi, yakitori, tacos, fish and chips, cauliflower, burgers, and pasta. In his free time, Tai is often working out at the gym or he’s at the stove working up new meal plans. His light-hearted philosophy is, “Live hard, laugh loud, love deeply, and be yourself”

Amanda is a southern native who grew up in Alpharetta, Georgia. Her background is Polish and Italian and she has been cooking since she was a little girl. Amanda started her career bartending, and fell in love with combining interesting ingredients to create craft cocktails. She began her culinary journey by throwing regular dinner parties for family and friends, and later began pairing food with wine, spirits, and beer. Amanda earned a degree from Kennesaw State University in Psychology and Culinary Sustainability and Hospitality.

At Ocean Prime, Amanda worked with Chef Jason Shelley, who shared his passion for food and perfection and drove her to learn all aspects of the kitchen. She is inspired by the creativity that all chefs have, and is driven by her own passion and love for food. Amanda enjoys bringing different spices and sauces to the table and is currently in the process of creating a cookbook for her fellow millennials.

Amanda loves making gnocchi and fresh pasta, as well as shrimp and grits and fried chicken and waffles. She also experiments with making her own curries and Moroccan style sauces. When she describes the kinds of foods she likes to eat, she will almost always say, “everything but bell peppers and cumin.”

Amanda’s favorite restaurant in Atlanta is Staplehouse because of Chef Ryan Smith’s heart and soul creations. Exploring food is a passion of Amanda’s, and she’s often eating her way through Atlanta Magazine’s 50 best restaurants. Amanda enjoys painting, yoga, and playing volleyball in her spare time. She also enjoys traveling, primarily to taste various regional cuisines. Amanda has a passion for making delicious food that captivates all flavor profiles and enjoys sharing her craft with families across Atlanta.

Chef Marty was born and raised in central Los Angeles in the middle of the city’s head-spinning culinary diversity, which inspired and informed his palate from a young age. An amazing dinner at chef Nancy Silverton’s seminal LA restaurant Campanile was the fuse that lit his passion to create wonderful culinary experiences and pursue a career in the field.

He began his career at Joachim Splichal’s Patina Catering Group, working on both private parties and major events such as the Oscars and the Emmys. He then became cheese monger at Joan’s On Third in LA, followed by four years with Lulu Powers Food to Flowers as Event Coordinator. After relocating to South Florida, Marty worked as head chef at Someone’s In The Kitchen Catering in Palm Beach, creating and implementing menus for both high profile events and private parties.

After two close shaves with major hurricanes, he decided to move to Atlanta in the fall of 2017, where since arrival he’s been the Chef/Kitchen Manager at Atlanta caterer Post Exchange Catering.
Marty’s favorite chefs are Louisville’s Edward Lee, who fuses his Korean roots with a New Southern sensibility, and LA’s Roy Choi, famous for his Korean/Mexican combinations.

He’s very excited to have settled in the Atlanta area, loving its mixture of big city bustle and sophistication and Southern charm and kindness. He finds the food scene here inspiring and revelatory, loving everything from Ramen at Umaido in Buford to a wonderful, creative meal at chic in town spots such as 8ARM. In addition to the Atlanta food scene, he enjoys Piedmont Park, the High Museum, and long walks with his three dogs on the Beltline.

Marty’s greatest happiness comes from providing people a consistently special dining experience. He’s truly grateful to be one of the fortunate people whose passion in life aligns with their profession. He greatly looks forward to sharing that passion with the clients of Atlanta Personal Chef Service.

Chef Keiko grew up in Greenville, South Carolina, where she learned to bake and cook with her family. Her mom taught Keiko and her brothers math skills through baking as young children, and when they were a little older, they each had to cook dinner once a week as a chore. But Keiko loved the chore, and she started asking her brothers for their spots in the weekly lineup. “I just knew it was my passion and where I could thrive in,” Keiko reflects.

Chef Keiko earned a bachelors degree before she continued her education in Paris, France, earning both a Cuisine and Pastry Diploma from Le Cordon Bleu, Paris in December 2019.

Many chefs have had an influence on Chef Keiko, especially those who she trained under at Le Cordon Bleu, Paris. She describes Chef Caussimon as “the most organized and cleanest chef that I have ever worked under. He creates the most magnificent dishes and it looks like the kitchen was never used.” She also learned from Chef Caals, who kept it light in the kitchen with his great humor, and Chef Olivier Guyon, who was Chef Keiko’s all-time favorite influence. Her experience ranges from restaurants, to catering, to front of house positions as well.

Chef Keiko enjoys making sauces, soups, fish dishes and pastas. She also has a sweet tooth, and enjoys making pastries, tarts, layered entremets, cookies and cinnamon bread.  

Keiko traveled frequently as a child which led to a love for trying different cuisines. When she’s eating out in Atlanta, she loves Flower Child. When she’s not cooking, Keiko enjoys catching up on her Bravo shows or watching movies, as well as hanging out with her boyfriend and friends, grabbing drinks or a bite to eat.

Chef Jacob, who works on our events team, is an Atlanta native. His father, also a chef, brought him into the culinary world at a young age, and his first job in the industry was as a cook for a Georgia Tech sorority.  Jacob also credits Chef Paul for teaching him how to be a chef.

Pork chops and steak are two of Jacob’s favorite dishes to cook, and he loves to eat a good carne asada. If he’s eating out in Atlanta, Jacob’s top pick is The Optimist. He also enjoys gardening, photography and taking care of animals.