The yacht chef hire is the highest-stakes decision on most vessels. What to look for beyond the CV — credentials, portfolio, trial cook, and fit.
By Emery Wallerich — founder of MOOR Crew
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THE PROBLEM
Food is the thing guests remember most. Not the tender toys, not the itinerary, not the flowers in the cabins. A guest who had a mediocre crossing forgets it if the meals were exceptional. A guest who had a flawless crossing remembers a disappointing dinner for years.
This makes the chef hire the highest-stakes decision on most vessels — and one of the hardest to get right.
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WHAT'S DIFFERENT ABOUT A YACHT CHEF HIRE
The galley is not a restaurant
A shore-based chef controls their environment. On a yacht, none of those things are true. Provisioning happens in whatever port the vessel is in — sometimes a major city, sometimes a remote anchorage. Dietary requirements change with the guest manifest. Sea conditions affect what's practical to cook. The galley moves.
A chef who has spent their career in a controlled land-based environment, however accomplished, is not automatically prepared for that reality.
Living on board
The chef lives on the vessel they cook on. A chef who is technically exceptional but interpersonally difficult creates a compounding problem — every meal service is also a team interaction, and a fractious galley affects the entire crew dynamic.
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THE HIRE BY VESSEL SIZE
Under 40m: Sole chef — crew and guests. Key criteria: versatility, high output alone, flexibility, strong inventory management.
40–60m: Head chef, sometimes crew chef. Key criteria: guest cuisine quality, provisioning expertise, team management.
60–80m: Head chef + crew chef. Key criteria: senior leadership, dietary range, team management under pressure.
80m+: Head chef, sous chef, crew chef, possibly galley hand. Key criteria: executive cuisine, team management, budget oversight, owner relationship.
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WHAT TO LOOK FOR BEYOND THE CV
Verifiable references from comparable vessels
A reference from a captain or chief stew on a vessel of similar size and program type is worth more than any qualification. Ask: how did they handle provisioning in unfamiliar ports? How did they manage dietary restrictions under pressure? How were they with the crew? Did they stay the season?
A food portfolio
Experienced yacht chef candidates maintain a food portfolio — photographs of dishes prepared on board, not staged shots. A strong portfolio shows range across cuisine styles, evidence of dietary adaptations, and presentation appropriate to the vessel's service level.
Trial cook
For any role above entry level, a trial cook before a contract is signed is standard practice. Include a guest-level meal and a crew meal, with dietary restrictions provided in advance. Assess not only the food but how the candidate approaches the galley, manages time, and interacts with the team.
Attitude and humility
The most common failure mode for experienced land-based chefs transitioning to yachts is assuming shore credentials transfer directly. A candidate who asks questions about the vessel's guests and current team before talking about their own credentials is demonstrating exactly the right orientation.
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THE CERTIFICATIONS THAT ACTUALLY MATTER
· STCW Basic Safety Training and ENG1: mandatory for all crew including the chef on commercial vessels
· Ships Cook Certificate (SCC): legally required if the vessel has 10 or more crew and operates more than 60 miles offshore
· Food Safety and Hygiene Level 2 or 3: standard expectation on any vessel with guest operations
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How long does it take to fill a yacht chef position?
Two to four weeks for a sole chef role on a mid-sized vessel. Four to six weeks for head chef positions on larger vessels where a trial cook is required. Chef is consistently one of the longer time-to-fill roles.
What is a realistic salary for a yacht chef in 2026?
Sole chef on a 40–50m vessel: €4,000–€7,000/month. Head chef on a 60–80m vessel: €7,000–€10,000/month. Head chef on an 80m+ vessel with a galley team: €9,000–€14,000/month. These are base salary figures; charter tip income adds materially on active programs.
Should I hire a yacht-experienced chef or an exceptional land-based chef?
Both are viable. A yacht-experienced chef is lower risk and faster to full effectiveness. An exceptional land-based chef can reach the same performance level but requires more onboarding time. For a sole chef position with no experienced colleague to assist the transition, yacht experience is a stronger weighting factor.
How do I handle a chef who creates crew tension?
Address it directly and early. Kitchen tension affects the entire vessel. A direct conversation focused on specific observable behaviours is the appropriate first step. If the behaviour continues, the decision between retaining technical excellence and preserving crew culture needs to be made clearly — the cost of crew turnover driven by a difficult galley is rarely worth the cuisine quality.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Emery Wallerich has seven years experience working on luxury yachts and is the founder of MOOR Crew, a global yacht employment platform. She has worked programs across North America, the Caribbean, the Atlantic, and South America, and spent years watching the same hiring friction play out from both sides — crew who couldn't find the right program, captains who couldn't find the right fit.
ACREW named her Best Social Influencer at their 2024 Superyacht Crew Awards. Her work has been covered by The Triton, YATCO, and Yachting International Radio. She writes about yacht employment from the perspective of someone who has lived it.
Press:
The Triton — the-triton.com/article/how-emery-wallerich-is-modernizing-crew-placement
YATCO — yatco.com/smarter-hiring-for-yachts
Yachting International Radio — yachtinginternationalradio.com/post/the-silent-crisis-in-yacht-crew-recruitment-and-the-founder-challenging-it
Follow Emery on Instagram @emerywallerich and TikTok @thatyachtiemery.