Whether you're searching for a caterer for a dinner party, birthday, anniversary, wedding reception, holiday, company picnic, or other event, personal Chef Mark Gallagher of Affordable Chef Services of Santa Cruz can custom cater a menu just for you. Our highly trained professional staff have the experience and passion to cater your special event.
Multi-course plated wine pairing dinners or buffet-style meals are available; Affordable Chef Services is also available for cooking classes and team building events. To ensure the best culinary experience, Affordable Chef uses the highest quality meats, fish and local Santa Cruz County-grown organic produce available.
Multi-course plated wine pairing dinners or buffet-style meals are available; Affordable Chef Services is also available for cooking classes and team building events. To ensure the best culinary experience, Affordable Chef uses the highest quality meats, fish and local Santa Cruz County-grown organic produce available.
Services
Chef Mark Gallagher is an acclaimed personal chef who has the skill and expertise to turn your next event into a culinary delight. Chef Gallagher's background includes a Bachelor of Culinary Arts degree from Johnson and Wales Culinary Arts Institute of America, and 17-plus years of local experience working in some of Santa Cruz County's most prominent restaurants and wedding catering banquet facilities.
Working with Chef Mark was a pleasure, really! I appreciated the fact that he returned my emails the same day, typically within the same hour. He was also readily available by phone. He was consistently professional and offered great suggestions. Our wedding was held at a friend's home in the Santa Cruz mountains and one of his staff, Summer, met us prior to the wedding to walk through the property.
Reviews (24)
Elenora Hassell
Nov 20, 2021
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We hired Chef Mark for our small wedding on May 15th, 2021. We wanted to keep everything COVID-friendly so we only had 80 guests in attendance. Chef Mark was amazing and went above and beyond to make sure everything was perfect. Everyone in attendance absolutely raved about the food. We also requested a dish that was special to us as a couple and Chef Mark made sure to include it for us. I couldn’t be happier with the experience we had. The only regret I have is that I didn’t have a chance to write this review sooner. Thank you so much Chef Mark for taking such good care of us. You are a true
Ann C.
Apr 04, 2021
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Just had Affordable Chef cater our first after COVID vaccination birthday party. It was outdoors among family and close friends. They did incredible job! Delicious food ! Professional service . They took care of every detail and cleaned up at the end. I can't recommend them highly enough! Thank you Mark Gallagher
Kris S.
Jun 17, 2020
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I'm still not rating this any higher, but I will say that as of today - he reimbursed my payment to him. It took two years, but it suddenly showed up in my PayPal account today. Holy Sh*tsnacks. I did not believe it would happen. I'm still never going to use him again, and I would recommend some way to pace your payment of him - but he finally made right. Thank you for doing the right thing.
NIcole R.
Dec 05, 2019
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I hired Mark from Affordable chefs for my Fathers 80th Birthday . I live in southern California and the party was in Felton CA. I had a budget and wanted good food. He was the guy!
Mark, came early to set up. Brought extra tables and chair, He had a very nice bartender. They hand passed appetizers and
the food was really good and fresh.
What I like is that they didn't have to ask me a lot of questions.
I could enjoy the party and they took care of everything.
Everyone was very happy with catering.
I would hire him again.
Mark, came early to set up. Brought extra tables and chair, He had a very nice bartender. They hand passed appetizers and
the food was really good and fresh.
What I like is that they didn't have to ask me a lot of questions.
I could enjoy the party and they took care of everything.
Everyone was very happy with catering.
I would hire him again.
Adam Sultaire
Aug 07, 2019
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We hired Mark for our wedding May 2019 and we couldn't have been more happy with our selection. We wanted a more casual "food truck" style dinner and Mark delivered- everything was delicious. Mark returned all of my emails and calls promptly during the planning process and was very open to any changes we made to the menu. Mark and his team also handled glassware, dish-ware and linens as well which was one less thing we had to worry about. On the day of the wedding itself, Mark and his team were AUTOMATIC and everything went like clockwork. My wife specifically wanted grill cheese and tomato soup
Kamille L.
Mar 09, 2019
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I honestly cannot write and praise Chef Mark and his crew enough!! They made our day amazing. We did not have to worry about anything. They were so on their game, and went as far as sending one of the servers out to us while we were taking photos so we could try the apps.
They ran on time, and the food was delicious! They made the dinner for us at our venue (OVY Camp - San Greogrio, CA)and then also made a brunch for us that Sunday. They were the best we could have gotten. I so appreciated the fact that it truly was affordable. When compared to other caterers - they don't even come close
They ran on time, and the food was delicious! They made the dinner for us at our venue (OVY Camp - San Greogrio, CA)and then also made a brunch for us that Sunday. They were the best we could have gotten. I so appreciated the fact that it truly was affordable. When compared to other caterers - they don't even come close
Sonya N.
Jan 11, 2019
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Kate F.
Oct 30, 2018
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Denise M.
Oct 06, 2018
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Mark and his team did excellent job for my mother's Celebration of Life. The food was fresh, delicious just what I ordered (with some helpful tips from Mark), and plentiful. Mark and team were highly attentive, making sure empty plates were picked up and dishes were refreshed constantly on the buffet table. They also were really nice to work with.
Rica L.
Jun 11, 2018
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We hired Chef Mark to cater our daughter's wedding at Roaring Camp in Felton. He and his staff did an outstanding job from providing a bartender for the alcohol to a delicious buffet. We received many compliments on the food which we had tasted beforehand. Chef Mark responds quickly for any questions or concerns. I would highly recommend Affordable Chef for your event planning.
Amy D.
Apr 07, 2018
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We hired Mark to cater brunch for our wedding, and we were very impressed! He replies in a timely manner to questions, requests, and concerns. From the moment he reached out in response to my project on Thumbtack, Mark worked hard to accommodate our needs. He made sure that we felt good about the menu before we booked him, and had us over for a tasting. Additionally, he noticed an item we didn't originally include on the menu and graciously added it to the meal (potatoes!). Many of our guests made comments to us about how much they enjoyed the food, and everyone (about 130 people) had as much
Sherry Cassedy
Nov 09, 2017
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Mark is amazing. He appears to be laid back but he handles all the stress and delivers regardless. He catered my son's wedding 3 years ago and did amazing job in very small kitchen for 100 people. He has gotten even better since. His food is even better and he has the whole thing down from set up -- chairs, tables, dish and glass ware, and excellent servers. They jumped in and did everything. This time he catered a formal dinner party for 75 on Saturday night and the wedding on the beach with full sit down dinner the next evening. Due to high tides we had a lagoon on the beach between entry and
Christopher B.
Oct 17, 2017
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Andrew T.
Sep 27, 2017
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We hired Affordable Chef Services to cater three meals at the 2017 California State Horsemen's Association Trail Trials State Championship Event at Santa Cruz. We hosted 70 horses and their riders along with nearly 50 volunteer staff members at the Graham Hill Showgrounds and Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park. We enjoyed our catered meals outdoors at the Santa Cruz County Horsemen's Association Club House.
Mark and Blanca were completely professional every step of the way and ensured that we had enough food even when our dining guest count exceeded our original estimate. Mark met his
Mark and Blanca were completely professional every step of the way and ensured that we had enough food even when our dining guest count exceeded our original estimate. Mark met his
Samantha T.
Jun 03, 2017
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We used Mark and his staff for our wedding in May at Roaring Camp, THEY WERE AMAZING! Our guests LOVED their meals and I'm still hearing about how good the food was! My husband and I completely missed our cocktail hour due to taking photos. I was super bummed because we had chosen to serve these delicious meatballs as an appetizer during it. Mark came over to check on us during dinner and I had told him how sad I was to have missed them and 5 mins later he appeared with my very own bowl full!! From the great communication before the wedding, setting up a tasting that was convenient for us
Desiree A.
Apr 11, 2017
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Mark and crew are so awesome!! So easy to work with no pretense no BS just solid food, solid service, and plenty of it!! Mark really helped us out by serving a fresh, healthy, and affordable dinner for 70 people including injured service men and women who were in Santa Cruz for the Operation Surf Event. He was really flexible when we had some last minute add-ons, and I definitely recommend his services. We will absolutely use him again and again!! Thanks Mark!!!
Tiffany S.
May 24, 2016
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I cannot say enough good things about Mark and his team! Our wedding was in May 2016, but we already had him booked in 2015. He is very responsive to his emails and offers great rates on catering. His menu is more creative than your standard wedding food, and all our guests loved it! Very well executed on all the dishes, but the vegetarian lasagna and meatballs were my favorite!
The plates, silverware and napkins were beautiful and well arranged. Mark has plenty of colors to choose from and is very accommodating.
His team did a FANTASTIC job on the day of our wedding!! They knew my husband&apos
The plates, silverware and napkins were beautiful and well arranged. Mark has plenty of colors to choose from and is very accommodating.
His team did a FANTASTIC job on the day of our wedding!! They knew my husband&apos
Amber B.
Dec 09, 2015
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My husband and I really enjoyed working with Mark as our wedding caterer and received many compliments on the food at our wedding (especially Mark's veggie lasagna). In addition to catering, Mark also provided the bartending staff for our reception and did the cake cutting. Mark's staff passed appetizers, served drinks and re-stocked the buffet like pros and with 215 guests we were no easy wedding to cater to. I was told by multiple guests how much they liked Mark's staff and how professional they all were and Mark made us feel at ease through the whole process while also being affordable
Sara G.
Oct 02, 2015
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I really cannot express enough of how wonderful of a job Mark and his team did to make our day the best day ever! I felt bad about how stressed I was as the bride going into the process of getting the catering details down, I had never planned a wedding before and I felt as if I was going to forget a little detail. Mark made this process SO easy for us with his at hand communication and straight to the point service. I was really thrown off at how laid back and confident he was and to be honest I almost felt unsure at times, but he definitely backed his game up with every detail!! We were blown
Gina Blanchard
Nov 06, 2014
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Sadly, I was sick on my big day and did not get the full experience, but I can still review with the following: Others loved the food. The displays were *beautiful*. Although communication was not always 100% easy with Mark, he responded very promptly every time. Everyone he brought had giant smiles constantly. No one from my 150+ attendees were lacking for food or drink the entire time. Even when I threw the schedule to pieces from my illness, they moved quickly and were spot-on.
I would use Mark and his crew again and again (and kind of want to throw a party to do so).
I would use Mark and his crew again and again (and kind of want to throw a party to do so).
Claudia L.
Oct 18, 2013
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4.5 stars
Mark is a kick. He catered for our wedding two weeks ago and was one of our favorite vendors. We had our friend plan our wedding and she was in constant contact with Mark. Mark never failed to reply to e-mails and was always really accommodating to us in terms of what we wanted. He's very much about the couple and their wedding day and "anything you want". We had a tasting with him at his place with my parents and they absolutely loved his food. The only caveat I had with the food was that it didn't taste as good at our wedding as it did during our tasting with him
Mark is a kick. He catered for our wedding two weeks ago and was one of our favorite vendors. We had our friend plan our wedding and she was in constant contact with Mark. Mark never failed to reply to e-mails and was always really accommodating to us in terms of what we wanted. He's very much about the couple and their wedding day and "anything you want". We had a tasting with him at his place with my parents and they absolutely loved his food. The only caveat I had with the food was that it didn't taste as good at our wedding as it did during our tasting with him
Mallory Pastrof
Jul 21, 2013
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We got married October 5th and were referred to Mark by a friend. Him and his team before and on the day of the wedding were amazing! Mark answered my emails promptly regarding any questions I had and was extremely nice in a very stressful time. His team was lovely! Guests from the wedding are still raving about how attentive and great they were. We had BBQ style dinner and it was delicious! I wish I could've eaten more, but was too busy to sit in one place for very long. Mark took care of so much regarding our wedding and checked in to see how we were doing throughout the party, it was really
Laura Martin
Jun 22, 2013
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My son lives in Santa Cruz and was getting married in August. I was in charge of the rehearsal dinner. I didn't start looking for venue until the end of May. I was panicking because I wasn't having any luck on such short notice. Reluctantly, I decided to have the dinner at the house I was renting on the beach. A house I had never seen. I searched the Internet and found Chef Mark's website. Afraid that I would come up against another, "no, we can't help you on such short notice", I called Mark with my fingers crossed hoping he would be my Hero. My needs were a little more complicated than just needing
Chris Pedersen
Sep 05, 2011
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Thanks Chef Mark and team! After a slightly hectic last minute venue change, you guys were all such great sports, and really made the day! The food all tasted great, and the guests loved it, more than anything all the service was fantastic. All the guests told us how much they loved the appetizers and the dinner, in addition, everyone said how nice all the staff was!
I would highly recommend you for all types of events, and specifically weddings! If you are looking for an amazing chef, who keeps their cool, and makes sure your special day runs perfectly this is the man you want to hire! We can
I would highly recommend you for all types of events, and specifically weddings! If you are looking for an amazing chef, who keeps their cool, and makes sure your special day runs perfectly this is the man you want to hire! We can
