Full-Time Private Chef Placement for Manhattan's UHNW Families

Montclair Chef is a boutique private chef placement agency for ultra-high-net-worth families. It was founded by a Michelin-trained chef with 19 years serving UHNW households as a private chef, and it focuses on one thing: placing full-time private chefs across Manhattan and worldwide. You can read more about our founder.

Every chef goes through full background verification, employment-history review, and direct reference verification with previous UHNW households. We place only chefs with a proven record of discretion and long-term private service, never event or short-term cooks. Most are Michelin-trained, and all have strong fine-dining backgrounds.

Yes. Many of Manhattan's most exclusive buildings, including prewar co-ops on Park Avenue and Fifth Avenue, require staff documentation, background verification, and in some cases building management approval before a chef begins. Every chef we place arrives fully vetted with documentation ready, so the approval process is seamless for your household manager or estate office.

Every placement includes an up to 6-month replacement guarantee. If the chef does not meet expectations within that period, we provide a replacement at no additional placement fee.

Full-time private chefs in Manhattan typically earn $150,000 to $280,000 or more per year, depending on experience, specialisation, and household complexity. Principals on Billionaires' Row and in prewar co-ops usually engage chefs at the higher end. This excludes food budgets and benefits. See our private chef salary guide for full ranges, or ask for tailored guidance during your consultation.

For most placements we deliver a shortlist of 3 to 5 vetted candidates within 10 days. The full process usually runs up to 14 days, including any building-specific onboarding, so the match between the chef and your household is precise rather than rushed.

It begins with a confidential consultation to understand your household. We then deliver a vetted shortlist within 10 days, you interview your favourites and arrange a paid trial day in your kitchen, and we finalise the placement with the 6-month guarantee.

Discretion runs through every stage. Chefs sign a confidentiality agreement before any introduction, we share only what is strictly necessary about your household, and we have a proven record placing chefs in some of Manhattan's most prominent and security-conscious homes.

Yes. Many of our clients keep homes in Manhattan, the Hamptons, and further afield in Los Angeles, London, or Monaco. We place chefs experienced in running multiple kitchens, coordinating with staff across properties, and travelling with seasonally mobile families. For our wider coverage, see our New York placements.

Yes. We place full-time, Kosher-certified private chefs for UHNW families across the Upper East Side, Central Park West, and Carnegie Hill. Every candidate is screened for strict Kosher compliance, household discretion, and long-term estate service. View our Kosher private chef placements.

Yes. We place chefs with advanced expertise in performance nutrition, longevity protocols, and medically-guided dietary programmes, used to working alongside nutritionists, functional medicine practitioners, and trainers in Manhattan's most demanding households. View our performance chef and nutrition chef placements.

A private chef works exclusively for one household full-time, managing daily dining, dietary needs, and the kitchen. A personal chef usually serves several clients on a rotating basis. Every Montclair Chef placement is an exclusive, full-time private chef dedicated to your household.

Start with a confidential consultation. Tell us about your household and what you are looking for, and we will guide you through the shortlist, trial, and placement. Reach us through the form on this page, or schedule a consultation.