Having worked on 20 different yachts, even those of Niki Lauda and Pharrell Williams, Rachel Cunningham shares her onboard experiences, from constant challenges to unique requests, all while enjoying 6 months of work per year and generous tips.
The story
For Rachel Cunningham, fate took her on an unexpected journey in Europe. It was in 2014 when she arrived from Australia to spend the summer in the Old Continent, captivated by the charm of the places she visited. An acquaintance had told her about some people working on yachts in the Mediterranean, and as luck would have it, she found herself in Palma de Mallorca, a renowned hub for luxury yachts, a clear sign of destiny. Rachel decided to send an email to the travel agency she worked for and resigned.
"I liked that place, but I was more enticed by the idea of staying in Europe. Loving to cook, I applied for a crew-chef position. However, to apply, I had to pass a fire safety and hydraulic exam and undergo a medical examination. Since I was in Palma, I did everything to get my certifications there," she tells Business Insider. After passing the exam, Rachel started distributing her resumes, and in no time, she was contacted by the captain of Formula 1 champion Niki Lauda's yacht. "I had no cooking qualifications for my first two years. When I started, I wasn't afraid to cook spaghetti bolognese for the entire crew, but I panicked when the captain asked me to do it for the owner. I remember being very nervous; then, apparently, he must have liked the sushi dish I prepared, because I got the job," she continues.
Growing more passionate about her new and unexpected profession, in 2016, Rachel attended a chef course on ships in France to obtain her qualification. Since then, she has never stopped traveling and cooking for guests on the world's most luxurious yachts, moving from the Seychelles to Bali and even crossing the Atlantic. Pharrell Williams, politicians, and royal families are just some of the guests who have enjoyed Rachel's cuisine. While it may not be surprising that these yachts come equipped with helicopters, spas, and submarines, what struck Rachel was a yacht with an editing room used by a National Geographic documentarian to edit videos from the owners' underwater dives.
But what is life like for a yacht chef? Rachel usually wakes up at 6 in the morning to prepare breakfast, but her real day begins when the onboard hostess communicates the guests' food preferences. It can go smoothly, but often, she has to accommodate specific dietary requirements rather than the diners' whims. "If there are people on board with nut allergies, gluten intolerance, or lactose intolerance on the same trip, my task can be quite challenging. I'm always ready to cook even if the guests decide to eat ashore. I'm often asked for midnight snacks; for example, when I had a group of guys returning from a nightclub in Miami, I prepared Wagyu beef burgers. It's not uncommon for me to receive requests for dishes with premium ingredients, such as Alaskan crab claws. When that happens, I make sure they arrive by plane from Alaska on the same day." But it doesn't end there; the young Australian chef's cuisine even caters to pets of yacht owners.
Despite Rachel's deep love for her work, she admits it's not all sunshine and roses. There are tough days, and the distance from family weighs heavily on her, although, aboard a yacht, she met her new boyfriend. Then there's the compensation: a yacht head chef earns between €6,000 and €12,000 per month and is paid for 12 months, even if they only work six. Tips can reach €50,000 in the case of particularly wealthy owners or visitors. "I do my job through word of mouth, so, to help people who are just starting to connect with other yacht chefs, in 2019, I launched thesuperyachtchef.com, a 360-degree support for every need." In these nine years of work on more than 20 different yachts, Rachel has continued to study and experiment during her downtime, attending a pastry course in the UK and a course with the monk Jeong Kwan, featured in an episode of "Chef's Table" on Netflix in South Korea. Her next wish? A sushi course in Japan, perhaps to celebrate the dish that changed her life.
