Chef Stephanie

Chef Stephanie is the bomb dot com. She catered our 60 guest wedding on March 12^th, and we wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.
From our first talk, Stephanie stood apart from other caterers. Instead of sending over a generic list of food choices, she asked what we were looking for and took it from there. She didn’t bat an eye when we told her we wanted a fully vegan wedding reception with minimal drama. She worked with us to create a customized menu, won us over with her delicious food, stayed within our budget, and handled all the rentals.
When our wedding day arrived, our friends and family raved about the food, the presentation, and the Chef Stephanie staff. all of which were amazing. My husband and I got to enjoy the delicious food at our reception, and our glasses were always filled. The staff did a fantastic job of anticipating our needs and took great care of us for the entire evening.
We loved working with Stephanie. She is super cool, flexible, a great listener, and did all she could to make our day perfect. We are so happy that Chef Stephanie and her team were part of our big day.

I recently had a birthday celebration for my husband. Chef Stephanie’s team were the best! They performed with the utmost of professionalism, care and manner. The food was great; every item prepared to perfection! I couldn’t have asked for a better group; prompt arrival, quick setup, courteous, organized, neat and considerate. I would recommend Chef Stephanie and her great staff to all who want an unforgettable experience. Five stars, indeed! ;0)
Gail in Oakland CA

Chef Stephanie catered our wedding in 2011, and then my cousin’s a year later. I can’t say enough good things about her, her staff and most importantly, her food. Our wedding guests said it was the best food they’d ever had at a wedding. She has great ideas using fresh well-​sourced, sustainable food. I would recommend her without hesitation. And can I come to your event?

We worked with Chef Stephanie for a wedding brunch event this past weekend and she did an outstanding job. She was professional, enthusiastic, willing to work with incredibly challenging dietary restrictions, and came with an all-​star team on the event day. The food was exceptional and everyone loved all of her creative and inspiring menu items. I would absolutely recommend Chef Stephanie for any private catering needs in the future and hope I get the chance to work with her again!

I am lucky beyond measure to have had two wedding experiences with Stephanie. After a fabulous experience with her at my best friend’s wedding many years ago, I knew I wanted to have her work her magic for my own wedding last year.
To begin with, we had many out of town guests and I wanted to make sure they fully experienced some of my favorite local flavors. She expertly brought other highlights into the team (like an oyster bar from the Hog Island Oyster Co. and Libations Unlimited — an artisan cocktail outfit from a very classy mobile bar). It was a great relief to me that she was able to coordinate all of the food-​related vendors and ensure the evening went smoothly.
Our wedding meal was a careful mix of foods that my husband and I loved, along with items that would make a savory and complete meal for everyone, including: vegetarians, vegans, gluten-​free keepers, kosher style people, pescatarians and the standard equal opportunity eaters. She helped me keep it simple, while still having plenty of choices for our guests. I have only good memories of a bright, refreshing quinoa tabouli, heirloom tomatoes, french lentils, grilled vegetables, herb baked salmon with caper & kalamata relish, grilled leg of lamb & mint pesto … and more. So many delicious flavors, a capable and professional staff and an evening of many satisfied guests — my experience with Chef Stephanie was delightful and I’d recommend her over and over again.

We just had our 1^st wedding anniversary this past weekend, and we still have guests commenting on Chef Steph’s food. I’ve been to a myriad of weddings over the years, and am a bit biased as I chose the menu, but I agree with our guests that what she and her team produced and delivered were some of the best wedding eats encountered.
Furthermore, Stephanie was great to work with; she knew how to accommodate various (and specific) tastes, budgets, pairings and personalities to the right fit. And I would say that her presence was the most professional of all we engaged with and really pulled things together for the day itself. That was very much appreciated. 5 stars from this happy couple.

I had the pleasure of shooting an amazing wedding at a beautiful venue. The food was wonderful. Everything was fresh and delicious. The presentation was just as fabulous. It was great working with Stephanie and her staff. I hope to work with her again in the future.

Chef Stephanie catered a House Concert/​Champagne Lunch in our home. She was very responsive to my requests and questions in the planning stages, her team was very professional with seamless service, and our guests and musicians raved about the lunch. Looking forward to the leftovers!

In May we rented the historical Yellow Ferry in Sausalito for two weeks. We were celebrating our 50^th Anniversary and wanted one night set aside for a family dinner. Something special… After much searching online I connected with Chef Stephanie. She didn’t disappoint. There were a few hiccups along the way that she helped resolve. On the appointed night Chef Stephanie did her magic making the night as special as we had hoped. From the three starters served by her Sous Chef/​Waiter until we all pushed away from the table, all was perfection. Would not hesitate to use Chef Stephanie again… Thanks Chef Stephanie!
(She does accept credit cards with a service charge, readily accepts checks)

Chef Stephanie came to my rescue the night before a dinner party for which I was totally unprepared. She put together a menu that was perfect for our group, was super professional, timely, friendly and to top it all off, made delicious food. Will definitely call Stephanie again next time I need an awesome chef.

Chef Stephanie hosted my company’s Christmas party. This was no small party — it was a large event with about 500 people. The food, service and presentation was off the hook amazing. The food kept coming out all night long — it was hot and delicious. The menu was creative, organic and beautifully presented, The servers were polished and polite. I can’t imagine a better experience. I would hire Chef Stephanie again in a heartbeat. Run, don’t walk, and call her now.

Chef Stephanie recently catered a cocktail party at our home and all of our guests really enjoyed the food and the service. She and her team were very professional and helpful from beginning to end. Chef Stephanie visited our home before the event to meet with us and review the layout of the kitchen and dining/​living room spaces. She shared with us sample menus of hors d’oeuvres and tailored a menu to meet our needs. She also advised us on getting the appropriate rentals (since we didn’t have enough glassware) and on stocking the bar.
On the day of the party, she and her team arrived right on time. Keith tended the bar and was able to make pretty much any drink that the guests requested. Tai brought trays of delicious appetizers around to the guests. The entire team was very friendly & welcoming to our guests. And the guests raved about the great food.
We were very happy with everything and would definitely recommended Chef Stephanie to our friends.

My wife and I had Chef Stephanie cater for my birthday last weekend. The food was awesome, her staff were attentive and friendly (one even brought lemons and some flowers from his own garden!), and she was great with incorporating the cake and Montréal smoke meat we bought into the menu. In spite of relatively short notice, she was still happy to swing by the house and adjust her quote based on the layout of the house and our input. We’d gladly have her again!

This is only the second time I’ve ever reviewed anything on Unilocal,so it shows how exuberant I am about my experience with Chef Stephanie as a caterer for a party at our house. In chronological order, here’s why we liked her so much:
1) We contacted several of the top rated caterers on Unilocal,and she was the most organized, prompt, and professional one that responded.
2) She came to our house several weeks before our party to suggest the layout of the bar, food, etc. so the traffic would flow well in our relatively small house. Throughout the planning process, she always responded to my emails and my nervous requests and I felt like she did everything possible to help our party go smoothly and make sure I didn’t need to worry about anything.
3) The food was amazing (and this really should be #1 in the area of importance)! We had heavy hors d’oeuvres and we told Stephanie that everything needed to be finger food because we don’t have room to sit down and eat with silverware, and it also needed to be enough food to suffice as a dinner. She recommended menu items and they were all delicious – all of the guests commented about the wonderful the food: stuffed mushrooms, ahi on cucumber chips, polenta with cheese and pesto and something else amazing on it, wonderful heirloom tomato crostini, chicken skewers cooked to perfection, and two different kinds of sliders (one with veggies and one with turkey burgers).
4) She and her staff organized everything perfectly – and her servers, bartender, and cooking staff were all wonderful. From the moment they came to our house to set up, we felt we didn’t need to do anything – they just took over in the most wonderful way.
5) The service was perfect. It was a crowded cocktail party with passed hors d’oeuvres and everyone commented about how amazing the servers were – they remembered those who couldn’t eat gluten or who were vegetarian, and the bartender remembered what everyone was drinking – I don’t know how they did it! And, of course, they were so friendly that they really added to the festive feeling of the event.
6) For this high level of food and service, the price was very reasonable.

***Extraordinary Wedding Catering Exceeded Expectations***
Chef Stephanie and her team catered our May 2013 wedding in SF. Three aspects in particular of Stephanie’s catering blew us out of the water and rated far higher than 5 stars: first, her passion for local, seasonal California cuisine; second, her impeccable organization and attention to the minutest of details; and third and most importantly, the AMAZING taste taste taste of the appetizers and dinner at the wedding reception. Before you hire another wedding caterer, I strongly suggest you meet with Chef Stephanie first.
From the first meeting we were impressed by Stephanie’s passion about food/​culinary sensibility. She is devoted to local, seasonal, organic California cuisine, which is what we wanted. We had guests from the UK, Australia and all over the US and we wanted to showcase amazing local foods at the peak of freshness and flavor. Chef Stephanie is the poster child for this type of cooking. If you care about the integrity of what is served at your wedding, then with Stephanie you will not be disappointed!
Wedding planning is overwhelming, chaotic and full of far more details than you could ever imagine. My husband and I are super low-​key and weren’t trying to have a fancy wedding to impress anyone, but nonetheless there were still so many details to attend to. As soon as we started working with Stephanie, it was a huge relief because we knew that the catering piece would be completely organized and go off without a hitch. Stephanie walked us meticulously through our event timeline, itemized every item required to cater the event and broke down all the details for us so we could easily make decisions. She is a master planner. When you meet to discuss catering, she immediately starts throwing details up on her walls (made of whiteboard). This is so helpful because it gives structure to something that can feel overwhelming. I love Stephanie’s no nonsense, direct approach. She didn’t coddle us or treat us like idiots. She engaged us, asked a ton of questions and offered a ton of suggestions. Her experience shows, and knowing that she is running your catering will take so much stress off your mind. The team she hires are super organized, cheerful and on top of things. They were constantly smiling and checking in with us at the reception, and made sure we immediately had appetizers and drinks when we arrived.
Saving the best for last: Stephanie’s cooking is excellent. Organization and values are great, but if the food doesn’t blow my mind and my guests’ minds then who cares. Stephanie worked with us to create a menu that reflected our mixed cultural heritage, as well as the fact that we got engaged on the Great Wall. She was full of fun ideas to bring in all these elements. Her quinoa tabbouleh was so fresh and fragrant that eating it completely recharged me. The salmon, roast, with horseradish sauce and other dishes at dinner were exquisite. The appetizers (chicken skewers with plum sauce, polenta with pesto, mozzarella and prosciutto) were so good that everyone was raving about them. The food was filling but so fresh, light, clean and flavorful. A completely satisfying meal! Exactly as she showed us in the tasting (and the roast was even better). Did not taste like «wedding food» at all. The meal was like dinner at a special restaurant you love – except that you got to share it with your spouse and 100 of your favorite people.
Chef Stephanie is not in the same league as other wedding caterers. Her food values, impeccable organizational mastery and cooking brilliance vault her into another league. Trust me, if you hire her for your wedding you will not be disappointed. The food at a wedding matters, and Stephanie can deliver a meal that you, your family and friends will deeply savor without any melodrama or stress.

Chef Stephanie was amazing. She helped me plan a surprise Valentine’s Day dinner for my wife. She was responsive and accommodating on all my needs and questions and she setup the apartment perfectly and my wife loved it! Chef Stephanie had great food and she made the night fun for me and my wife. Overall, awesome experience!

I called up Chef Stephanie quite last minute to see if she would be able to do a surprise dinner for my wife for our 1^st Anniversary.
My wife an I arrived home at the same time, where Chef Stephanie already had hors d’oeuvres ready for us. Everything worked out perfectly and was even more so delicious.
I loved the detail that Chef Stephanie put into her food, from the black volcano salt to the perfectly flaked halibut. Simply delicious!

Chef Stephanie is a magician in the kitchen. Her food is a feast for the eyes and simply delicious. I love that she is able to present flavors that are both familiar and new so that when the meal ends, you’re left thinking, «wow, that was the best ‘fill in the blank’ I’ve ever had!». Her range of cooking styles is vast, and she can satisfy all eaters, from the biggest carnivores to the strictest of vegans (sometimes even at the same table!). But that’s just one aspect of this talented Chef.
What most folks don’t get to see is the behind the scenes magic that Stephanie creates. As a pastry chef, I’ve had the opportunity to work with Stephanie and her team on a variety of weddings and special events and am always blown away at how well her staff work together to make an event seamless. There is a genuine sense of camaraderie and family that is infectious and makes working with her a true joy!

Chef Stephanie was amazing.
Stephanie catered our recent family reception at our house. Her food was amazing, with the «BLT» pancetta, arugula, heirloom tomato; sliders; ceviche, and polenta as my top favorites. All of our guests raved about each dish, and I heard at least once that each dish was someone’s favorite. I heard this about everything: «I’ve had 12 of „name of dish“ — it’s the best.»
All of the food is presented beautifully.
We had 75 guests which is a pretty big number — Chef Stephanie was beyond capable for this number, and I’m sure even more.
Our kitchen is not large or professional grade, but she made it work. All of the output was top notch.
Stephanie’s crew were all professional, friendly, and hard working. They were all very genuine.
Stephanie staffed the bar for us too, which was a big hit.
Thank you Stephanie for making our event a smash hit, your food is wonderful, and you were very nice to work with.
Highly recommended.

Stephanie and her team did a very solid job for our wedding. She was invaluable in the time leading up to the wedding, with a strong attention to detail, always on top of everything and gently pointing out things we needed to consider. The tasting was great and she was receptive to our feedback about minor changes. During the wedding itself, her staff did a great job helping prepare the venue and providing service throughout the evening. As for the food itself, there was a drop-​off in the flavor/​quality from the tasting to our 75-​person event; and we expected some of that. If not for that, she would have gotten a perfect score. The food was never bad, just not as good as we had hoped for based on the tasting.