M/Y KJOS – 37m

Ivan started his career at the age of 15 washing dishes in a local Manor House restaurant, where he instantly fell in love with working in the kitchen and knew he wanted to become a chef.

Under the Direction of Head Chef Mark Birchall (2 Michelin Stared Chef at Moor Hall Lancashire) he worked his way up got his qualifications.
He then worked from the ages of 17-21 in some of the best restaurants in Lancashire. Gilpin Lodge, The Longridge Restaurant. (Paul Heathcoat) proving himself as a strong Chef De Partie and mastering a strong Patisserie Background.

At the Age of 22 he took his first Head Chef job At Haighton Manor in Preston which became a very successful wedding venue & restaurant. After three years Ivan travelled to Val D’Issere to be the Head Chef of Le Chardon Mountain Lodges Flagship 5-star Chalet Chalet Chardon. This was a steppingstone into the yachting industry.
He did back-to-back winter and yacht seasons for the next 3 years working on 37-40m yachts, before taking the role on M/Y Kjos where he has been the full-time yacht chef and also private chef for the owner for the last 2 years. During this time he also did various stages at Moor Hall Lancashire & Paul Ainsworth’s No 6 in Cornwall.
Ivan prides himself on his organisation, discipline & love for learning and trying new things with food, balancing flavours & textures, and constantly developing his skills. Working in a small galley is hard sometimes so these skills are invaluable.