I create private dining experiences in Santa Monica, with fine-dining execution and menus tailored to dietary needs.

Daniela Perez Reyes

I design fresh, personalized menus—fine dining when you want it, and dietary-friendly when you need it.

I’m a professional chef with over 15 years of experience and formal culinary training. I love crafting fine-dining and California-fresh meals, and I also bring my Peruvian roots to the table with bold, vibrant flavors.

For more than 10 years, I’ve specialized in cooking for dietary needs—from SIBO and Celiac to Keto and Paleo—so you can relax and enjoy delicious food that truly fits your lifestyle.

Let’s plan your menu

I cook with Aloha—bringing a welcoming attitude to every dish I create.

What you can expect when I cook for you

I cook with calm, creativity, and intention

Cooking brings me peace, and I love the creative side of plating and building new dishes. Creating food that makes people feel happy is what drives me.

I bring tradition and classical training together

I learned to cook with my grandmother—she’s the reason I named my company after her. I also trained at the Art Institute and Le Cordon Bleu, which shaped my technique and standards.

I lead with hospitality

My kitchen philosophy is simple: I cook with Aloha. After living in Oahu for six years, I learned to bring the islands’ welcoming spirit into every experience I host.

Daniela’s Menus

I offer curated menus for private dinners and gatherings, designed to feel abundant, seasonal, and beautifully plated. I can adapt dishes to dietary needs while keeping the experience vibrant and satisfying.

Request a tasting or book a date

Stories and testimonials

Chef Daniella is professional, attentive, and adaptive. She could quickly turn situations around and make delicious food with limited supplies in our kitchen. She is communicative and wisdom as well. Love to have her again!

Maggie Cheng

The food was terrific and the evening was wonderful. Definitely hire her asap!!

Kevin Truong

Daniela is a warm soul that provided a great service to my family. Throughout the planning phase, she was great at communicating ideas and providing solutions.

Keith Garner

This was an amazing experience from start to finish! Chef Daniela prepared a menu of fantastic dishes with interesting stories behind each. I received this experience as a gift for my 60th birthday and it was a unique and unforgettable experience.

Pervez Sikora

Daniela was the perfect addition to our dinner party - her service was truly 10/10. Her cooking was absolutely delicious, she went above and beyond to accommodate our guests’ dietary needs. Daniela’s energy was both beautiful and engaging, creating a warm and welcoming atmosphere for everyone. Communication leading up to the event was seamless and professional. We highly recommend her and would gladly welcome her again.

Jess Lingard

The entire booking process was incredibly simple start to finish. Chef Daniela was amazing, the meal was great, and we were able to relax and enjoy our evening thanks to their hard work!

Sara Samaniego

Chef Daniela and her team were awesome! They made an amazing Japanese dinner and even taught the kids how to create their own sushi rolls. The food was great and we will definitely work with her again!

Chris

Chef Daniela was amazing to work with! She assisted our company with sampling our product at a show. She was engaging, flexible, helpful and very reliable. We would definitely recommend her for you next event :)

Krista Thomson

I had an incredible experience with Daniela Perez Reyes! The food was absolutely amazing—classic farm-to-table Mexican with a unique twist. She was able to accommodate a gluten-free menu for the bride-to-be, which was a huge plus. Daniela was kind, punctual, and cleaned up thoroughly after the meal. I would highly recommend her for any event!

Katie Frank

Chef Daniella was absolutely amazing!! She is extremely professional and conversational. She was able to walk us through techniques she used while cooking. Each course was elegantly prepared and delicious. We had so much fun that night and ate like Kings and Queens!! We will use Chef Daniella again and may even take her on some trips with us!! Thank you Chef!! So much fun!!

Laura

Chef Daniella was wonderful!! As was her fantastic menu that she prepared for us. Her communication leading up to the birthday party for my Dad's 70th was excellent, we were able to talk about the menu so we knew exactly what to expect. She also recommended different wines for us to pair with the menu-- which we loved. During the family dinner party she was wonderful about humoring all of our conversation (it must have been exhausting, we talk too much). But we had so much fun talking with her! The food was fantastic, we were all so full by end of the evening. The scallops and the ceviche and shrimp were our top favorites, she made this crazy avocado mousse that we all loved. The Short ribs over polenta were so good and the churros as well. Highly recommend Chef Daniella. The house was left maybe cleaner than when she arrived-- and we were all very pleasantly surprised to find leftovers in the refrigerator!

Danielle Boudaghians

Fantastic job. Highly Recommend!

Aaron Samuels