SERGIO Marichales

Chef, Personal & Yacht

Born And Raise in Beautiful Venezuela I found my passion in the kitchen at a young age coming from a family to loves to share times together while cooking from typical Venezuelan and Caribbean recipes to Italian Fresh Pastas and Sauces, my aunts and grandma are amazing cooks and always thrive to make people happy with their humor, passion and of course their cooking. Moving forward and as I grew up I become more and more interesting in learning new recipes trying new flavors finding myself enrolling in Culinary School Right after high school Back in Venezuela.

At Zi Teresa I learn from the most basic cuts to baking and pastry being a great foundation while I decided to join Le Cordon Bleu where I did not only further my culinary education but also the needed Experience in Restaurants, Hotels, Catering and as a Private Chef that I needed to Excel in the Field. After working in New Orleans, I decided to head back Home and move Away from the kitchen and venture into the Automotive Market specifically in Motor Oil,Filters and Tyres Started from the bottom and 3 years later grew up to have clients all over the country and pass from 5 boxes to a bit more than 15 tons of oils but as always the kitchen was calling more and more times I was finding myself cooking for me, family and friends feeling I was missing something and with it came a small decision some luck and my first trip to the Bahamas. In need of an vacation with the excuse of buying oil from an international supplier in Florida USA. That first trip to the bahamas was the beginning of the incredible journey im still in till this day

With this note of a first trip to the Bahamas started my career in yachting with the opportunity by a Colombian captain, a Mix of right Place, Right Time, willingness and luck took me on my first trip to the Bahamas, Coincidently the day we sail was also the day i was supposed to go back home.

Having travel and finish a couple of trips, I decided that as any talent if you don’t practice it you can not become better so I took a break from the boats and decided to start working back again for one of my former mentors in his new catering company, getting my speed back, and refreshing all of my knowledge while learning and helping . Opportunity came around again with another boat in the Caribbean, following with another boat that came with a Beautiful Villa Combo back in the Bahamas that way learning how to deal with different guest and their request also adding a plus on the beautiful sights that I was giving everyday as part of this great adventure that is the Yachting industry.
Shortly after finishing both of this trip, I found myself in a 16 hr flight(22 with the layovers) to Hong Kong as a Sous Chef in a 60m boat working under the wing of a Michelin Star Chef being one of the most amazing Experience culinary wise that I had to date. Being rebuild under his guidance learn from basic to modern techniques and baking and pastry with an eye for detail and excellence without compromising flavor, always push to do better and looking into the Efficiency and Quality, while also learning about the culture, the food the traditions and even some of the language while traveling around China Taiwan Thailand and Hong Kong meeting amazing people and chefs along the way in my Journey.

The Mediterranean was not only part of my bucket list but where I knew yachting really comes to true from Spain all the way to Croatia different seas, amazing sceneries follow by a great crew of which I am really grateful as we spend more than 110 days at sea, with  back to back charters with little turnaround and enduring boss trip, made realize that I was not only loving what I was doing but definitely happy to have like minded individuals that even thru the long hours were always there for me as I was for them.

These experiences only grew bigger as well as the vessels i was working on from explorers, to 270+ft yachts and all the schematics that this carries from logistics, prepping , provisioning, handling bigger teams and of course delivering the best product possible, this all done while exploring the world from Alaska to Mexico, Maldives, Pacific Islands, Polynesia, Fiji, Australia, Caribbean, West Coast USA by the end it keeps being a Venezuelan Kid with the dream of traveling the world.

Style

Something I always get asked is “what’s your signature dish?” and it’s such a broad question or answer because my style of cooking its Latin Fusion but then every place and every step in my career has shown me something different and interesting that I can’t really say there its one or two its more about adaptation.

Adapting is as much of being a chef as the white coat and the knifes, adapting to the Geography you’re in, your guest, your staff, even yourself thru time. Making the answer sound more like “what would you like to eat” that way narrow it down to the ingredients or the style of cooking its needed for that occasion.

Im a die hard fan of good seafood and while being in asia I have had the opportunity to have some really amazing one but I also enjoy meat and even vegetarians delights while cooking and also eating.

Experience