Private Chef · Italian Cuisine · New York City

Restaurant-quality Italian cooking, served in your home or office.

Robyroot is Roberto Ferreira's private chef and office catering service, with over 15 years of cooking in New York's Italian kitchens. You provide the place and the guests; I do the shopping, cook, serve, and leave the kitchen clean.

Get a quote See the Italian menu
Private chef from $95 / person Office catering from $25 / person
Private chef finishing a plated dish in a home kitchen
No going out, no waiting for a table

The Italian restaurant experience, in your dining room.

2services: home & office
23dishes on the menu
NYCservice area
2009cooking since

Services

Two ways to book Robyroot

Both services come from the same Italian menu. Only the format changes: a served dinner at your home, or a buffet ready on time at your office.

Plate of spaghetti al pomodoro with fresh tomato and basil

Private Chef at Home

$90–110 per person · $650 minimum per event

  • Italian menu of your choice, cooked in your kitchen
  • Groceries included: I arrive with all the ingredients
  • Table service for you and your guests
  • Kitchen cleaned up when we're done
  • Ideal for dinners of 6 to 12 people
Catering buffet set up with trays in an office

Office Catering

$25–30 per person · 10-person minimum

  • Italian buffet ready at lunchtime
  • Lunch box format ($25) or served buffet ($28–30)
  • Delivery and setup included in Manhattan and the Bronx
  • Salad and side options for everyone
  • Service charge and taxes are added on top

About the Chef

Over 15 years in New York restaurant kitchens

Chef Roberto Ferreira in his chef coat in a New York restaurant kitchen
Chef Roberto FerreiraIn the kitchen, in his chef coat, at a New York restaurant.
Chef Roberto Ferreira in front of the wood-fired oven
By the wood-fired ovenIn front of the oven where the wood-fired pizza comes out every day.

Chef Roberto Ferreira's story starts in 2009 at Scarlatto (47th between 7th Ave and Broadway), an Italian restaurant that had once been a Roman kitchen. There he learned the craft from the ground up: salads, fresh pasta made by hand — gnocchi, ravioli, and tortellini —, pastry, and the grill and pasta stations. He then moved through Maria Pia and Carbonara, and soon became a chef: first at Gallo Nero (formerly Zucca) and then at Intermezzo, two Chelsea restaurants. In that same neighborhood he was Pastry Chef at Le Zie, a trattoria near 21st and 22nd, and worked with Daniel Boulud at Boulud Sud, on salads. He also spent time at Tasca Chino, half Chinese and half Spanish, working salads, pastry, and the line.

At Serafina (55th and Broadway) he worked the entire line — prep, grill, sauté, pasta, pastry, and salads — and was then recommended as chef of Serafina East Hampton, where he stayed five years, until the restaurant was sold. Back in Manhattan, from 2019 to today he is the chef of Serafina 79, "Fabulous Pizza" — the first Serafina of all — where fresh wood-fired pizza comes out of the oven every day. Over 15 years of restaurant cooking, with no shortcuts: that's the menu he now brings to your home or office.

  • Fresh pasta by handGnocchi, ravioli, and tortellini since 2009.
  • The whole linePrep, grill, sauté, pasta, salads, and pastry.
  • Chef in Chelsea & the HamptonsChef at Gallo Nero and Intermezzo; five years as chef at Serafina East Hampton.
  • Wood-fired pizza, todayChef of Serafina 79 "Fabulous Pizza" since 2019.

Gallery

Real photos from my kitchen

No stock photos: these are real dishes, cooked and served by the chef at his own services.

Plates of golden fried cakes served with a green salad, plated by Chef Roby
Golden cakes with saladGolden cakes served with a green salad, plated for guests. The chef's own real photo.
Salmon fillet with roasted potatoes and broccoli on a white plate, from Chef Roby's kitchen
Salmon with roasted potatoes & broccoliSalmon fillet with roasted potatoes and broccoli, fresh out of the kitchen. The chef's own real photo.
Grilled fish fillet with lemon slices, broccoli rabe and roasted potatoes on a plate, from Chef Roby's kitchen
Grilled fish with lemon, broccoli rabe & roasted potatoesGrilled fish fillet with lemon, served with broccoli rabe and roasted potatoes. The chef's own real photo.
Cream dessert with a swirl of red fruit sauce, cherries and mint leaves on a white plate, from Chef Roby's kitchen
Cream dessert with red fruit sauce, cherries & mintCream dessert finished with red fruit sauce, cherries, fresh mint, and a dusting of powdered sugar. The chef's own real photo.
Tuna tartare over avocado topped with crispy strands and microgreens on a white plate, from Chef Roby's kitchen
Tuna tartare over avocado with crispy topping & microgreensTuna tartare served over avocado, topped with a crispy garnish and microgreens. The chef's own real photo.
Pasta in tomato sauce with shrimp and clams, finished with chopped parsley, from Chef Roby's kitchen
Pasta with shrimp & clamsPasta in tomato sauce with shrimp and clams, finished with chopped parsley. The chef's own real photo.
Grilled octopus tentacle over spinach with sauce on a white oval plate, from Chef Roby's kitchen
Grilled octopus with spinachGrilled octopus served over spinach, with its sauce on an oval plate. The chef's own real photo.
Cream dessert with a red sauce swirl, fresh strawberries and mint on a rectangular plate, seen from another angle, from Chef Roby's kitchen
Cream dessert with strawberries, from another angleThe cream dessert with its red sauce, fresh strawberries, and mint, seen from another angle on a rectangular plate. The chef's own real photo.
Slice of pie with whipped cream, chocolate drizzle, a raspberry and mint on a rectangular plate, from Chef Roby's kitchen
Slice of pie with cream & chocolateSlice of pie with whipped cream, chocolate drizzle, a raspberry, and mint. The chef's own real photo.
Grilled shrimp and scallops over spinach with a yellow sauce on a white plate, from Chef Roby's kitchen
Grilled shrimp & scallops with spinachGrilled shrimp and scallops served over spinach, with a yellow sauce. The chef's own real photo.

Pricing

Clear pricing, no surprises

Robyroot's starting prices in NYC: below established private chefs ($150+ per person) to break into the market, with the same full service.

Price your event in seconds

Move the guest count and see the estimate instantly. The final price is confirmed once we build your menu.

Your estimate

$760

Book with this estimate

How the private chef is charged

  • $90–110 per person depending on the menu you choose
  • $650 minimum per event, even for small groups
  • Example: a dinner for 8 at $100 per person = $800
  • Includes groceries, cooking, service, and cleanup

How catering is charged

  • Lunch box $25 · buffet $28–30 per person
  • 10-person minimum per order
  • Example: lunch for 20 at $28 per person = $560
  • Plus ~25–30% for service charge and taxes (delivery included in Manhattan and the Bronx)
  • Or build your order by the tray: every dish on the menu has a half tray price (serves 6–8) and a full tray price (serves 12–15)

For Roby · Launch plan

What comes first: the trademark, the app, or the website?

The website first. The trademark and the app wait — this is the order that protects your money and brings in clients right away:

1

The Italian menu and pricing Done

Without a menu or prices, there's nothing to sell. They're already set: 23 Italian dishes, private chef at $90–110 per person ($650 minimum), and catering at $25–30 per person (10-person minimum).

2

The NYC food certificate In progress

It's the only legal requirement before cooking for clients. Your 2014 card was lost and more than 10 years have passed, so you have to redo it: free online course (15 lessons, also in Spanish) and an in-person exam for $24 at the Health Academy, 160 W 100th St, Manhattan. Plan: do it on Thursday.

3

The website with menu and pricing Done — this is it

This is what brings you clients: a simple page with the menu, the prices, and how to book. You don't need an app to start selling.

4

The trademark — later Later

The name Robyroot is clear on all three fronts: USPTO (0 registrations), the robyroot.com domain (available, $14.48), and the NY business registry (it doesn't exist). Once the business is bringing in money, register the federal trademark: a single class, Class 43 (chef and catering services), for $350. Using the name in business already gives you rights in the meantime.

5

The app — last Last

Nobody downloads the app of a chef they don't know yet. An app only makes sense if your existing clients start asking for it to place repeat orders.

Book

Request your date

Fill out the request and copy it to send to Robyroot. With those details we'll build your menu and confirm the final price.

Email robyrootnyc@gmail.com Email us to book or request a quote Phone 929-304-2201 Call or text to check your date
Your request will appear here, ready to copy.