40 UNDER 40
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Marissa Gerlach
Chef de Cuisine, Raya Restaurant at the Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel
By Elaine Murphy & Sarah VaughnPublished: May 01, 2012
Marissa Gerlach has worked with food ever since she got her first job at the Scoop Deck, an ice cream store in Dana Point. Now, as the head chef at RAYA at the Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel, Gerlach whips up Pan-Latin cuisine using sustainable seafood and seasonal ingredients. After earning her culinary arts certification from Orange Coast College, the Dana Hills High School graduate built a strong reputation working at some of the best restaurants and hotels in California, and aspires to one day become one of the few female executive chefs at the Ritz-Carlton. Gerlach has served several famous chefs and even received praise from British chef Gordon Ramsay.
Gerlach says her most significant accomplishment is being able to be successful at doing something she loves: “Being a chef isn’t just about the love of cooking. There is a lot more that goes with it, and it takes a certain kind of person to adapt.”
This ambitious and accomplished young professional takes pride in her work while more than holding her own in the fast-paced restaurant world. In her previous position as a lead pastry cook, the head chefs bet that she wouldn’t last a week without crying; by the end of her two-year tenure in that kitchen, she hadn’t shed a tear.
When she’s not in the kitchen, Gerlach prefers to be outdoors participating in active sports such as mountain biking, caving and camping. ritzcarlton.com/laguna
Best business advice: “Never stop learning.”
OC METRO's 2012 40 UNDER 40
Lily Knowles ≈ Ashleigh Aitken ≈ Jeremy Yamaguchi
Kevin Willson ≈ Megan Lavender ≈ Jason Lucash
Tan Rezaei & Navid Firoozi ≈ Julie Schoenbachler
Chris Winn ≈ Shawna Smith Gotreau ≈ Matt Petteruto
Kelly Lewis ≈ Justin Choi ≈ Marissa Gerlach ≈ Josh McCarter
Brian Davis ≈ Patrick Strader ≈ Quy "Q" Nguyen
Carla Vargas ≈ Patrick Rue ≈ Jennifer Tucker Klein
Brandon Burton ≈ Lauren O’Gorman ≈ Inna Kassatkina
Tom Reimers ≈ Jackie Ferlita ≈ Eric Bender
Dale Partridge & Aaron Chavez ≈ Danny Sonenshine
Russell Bendel ≈ Sandra Jones ≈ Balaji Krishna
Saimah Chaudhry ≈ Dan Nasitka ≈ Laura Hess
Kohl Crecelius ≈ Larry Labrado Jr. ≈ Melissa Beck
Jeremy Linehan ≈ Stephen Silver
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Gerlach says her most significant accomplishment is being able to be successful at doing something she loves: “Being a chef isn’t just about the love of cooking. There is a lot more that goes with it, and it takes a certain kind of person to adapt.” This ambitious and accomplished young professional takes pride in her work while more than holding her own in the fast-paced restaurant world. In her previous position as a lead pastry cook, the head chefs bet that she wouldn’t last a week without crying; by the end of her two-year tenure in that kitchen, she hadn’t shed a tear. When she’s not in the kitchen, Gerlach prefers to be outdoors participating in active sports such as mountain biking, caving and camping. ritzcarlton.com/laguna Best business advice: “Never stop learning.” OC METRO's 2012 40 UNDER 40
Lily Knowles ≈ Ashleigh Aitken ≈ Jeremy Yamaguchi
Kevin Willson ≈ Megan Lavender ≈ Jason Lucash Tan Rezaei & Navid Firoozi ≈ Julie Schoenbachler Chris Winn ≈ Shawna Smith Gotreau ≈ Matt Petteruto Kelly Lewis ≈ Justin Choi ≈ Marissa Gerlach ≈ Josh McCarter Brian Davis ≈ Patrick Strader ≈ Quy "Q" Nguyen Carla Vargas ≈ Patrick Rue ≈ Jennifer Tucker Klein Brandon Burton ≈ Lauren O’Gorman ≈ Inna Kassatkina Tom Reimers ≈ Jackie Ferlita ≈ Eric Bender Dale Partridge & Aaron Chavez ≈ Danny Sonenshine Russell Bendel ≈ Sandra Jones ≈ Balaji Krishna Saimah Chaudhry ≈ Dan Nasitka ≈ Laura Hess Kohl Crecelius ≈ Larry Labrado Jr. ≈ Melissa Beck Jeremy Linehan ≈ Stephen Silver <<< Back to main page |
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