Today we’d like to introduce you to Miguel.
Hi Miguel, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
With over 15 years of experience in the culinary industry, I have loved every step of the journey. My passion for cooking began during high school when I volunteered as a cook for my wrestling team while competing as a wrestler myself. From there, I took my first professional role as a dishwasher and, through years of dedication, education, and travel, worked my way up to Executive Chef. I’ve held leadership positions at upscale brunch spots in downtown San Diego and served as Sous Chef at a Marriott resort in Coronado, California.
Attending culinary school provided a pivotal opportunity for a three-month externship at PUJOL in Mexico City under the renowned Chef Enrique Olvera. PUJOL, recently ranked #5 in the world by Pellegrino’s 50 Best, profoundly influenced my culinary philosophy and refined my approach to flavor and presentation.
My passion for crafting memorable flavor combinations has been deeply shaped by my extensive travels. I’ve explored the culinary traditions of Europe on three separate visits, as well as South America, including Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay. My extensive travels throughout Mexico have also provided a rich foundation for creating diverse and innovative menus.
As a microgreens vendor at local farmers’ markets, I source approximately 90% of my ingredients directly from these markets. This commitment ensures that every dish is crafted with quality, organic, local, and fresh produce. The only exceptions are exotic, out-of-season, or imported goods, which I carefully incorporate when necessary to elevate the dining experience.
With over 300 successful services, I deliver exceptional dining experiences that celebrate freshness, creativity, and unforgettable flavors.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
One of the main challenges I’ve faced as a private chef is navigating the slow seasons. There are times of the year when business naturally slows down, and that downtime can be difficult to manage. On top of that, the market in San Diego is highly competitive, with many talented chefs competing for the same clients. The appeal of getting out of the tough life and schedules of proffessional kitchens and instead work from home entices many chefs. While these obstacles have been tough, they’ve also pushed me to stay creative, adapt my offerings, and consistently find new ways to stand out.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
We are a small catering/private/personal chef business based out of Chula Vista. We service all of the surrounding areas as far as Santa Barbara, Joshua Tree, Palm Springs, Big Bear, Temecula, Los Angeles, San Diego of course and we even cross the border and do events in Rosarito and Valle de Guadalupe. We cater to any special event from weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, bachelor and bachelorette parties. We also offer meal prep and cooking class services exclusive to San Diego County. Another service we offer is a multiple services option. For example, families from out of town come and rent a place to stay and instead of spending money on a restaurant or hours cooking and cleaning, we come in and take care of all their culinary needs in order for them to maximize their time while visiting. We take care of breakfast, lunch and dinner and they can continue to enjoy our beautiful city. I specialize in Mexican cuisine, from the whole country ranging from Oaxacan Mole, Tortilla Soup, Tijuana Cesar Salad, Wagyu Picadillo Sopes and a wide range of hand crafted salsas from chipotle chocolate salsa, tangy salsa verde and guajillo salsa amongts others. I am well versed in other cuisines such as Italian, Spanish, French, Mediterranean and classic American. We are very proud of our organic growth in the business throughout the years servicing southern california, slowly building our brand and clientele from the ground up. What mainly sets us apart from the rest is that we focus on building flavor profiles in dish that create a truly memorable experience. We source most of our ingredients from the farmers markets where we also sell microgreens and take advantage of seasonal ingredients as much as possible.
Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
Best way to support the business would be to spread through word of mouth. We originally started with friends and family with pop up events in our home and with word of mouth, we would get recommended and slowly started building a clientele base like that. We currently have various clients that we do weekly meal preps for and they were all from recomendations from one of our first clients nearly five years ago.
Pricing:
- 4 course meal $150 per person, we provide ingredients
- 5 course meal $180per person, we provide ingredients
- 6 course meal $205 per person, we provide ingredients
- 7 course meal $250 per person, we provide ingredients
- Meal prep and multiple services options vary depending on clients needs and preferences. Ingredients to be reimbursed by client
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Sunnykitchen.llc
Image Credits
My cousin took the first three photos Philip Alexander
@philipalxndr (IG)
