Monica Galetti

Monica Galetti (née Faʻafiti, born August 1975) is a Samoan-born New Zealand chef. She is a judge on Masterchef and chef proprietor of Mere in London.[1] She was senior sous-chef at the prestigious Le Gavroche restaurant in London. Galetti has been a judge on the BBC competitive cooking programme MasterChef: The Professionals since 2009 and has presented Amazing Hotels: Life Beyond the Lobby with Giles Coren since 2017.

Monica Galetti
Monica Galetti (left) assisting Michel Roux Jr. while Olly Smith narrates MasterChef Live 2009
Born
Monica Faʻafiti

(1975-08-26) August 26, 1975
Samoa
Spouse(s)David Galetti

Early life

Galetti was born in Samoa, and was initially raised by two aunts as her mother had moved to Auckland, New Zealand, for work.[2] At the age of eight, Galetti moved from Samoa to Wellington, New Zealand, and lived there with her parents and five siblings.[3][4][5] In the early 1990s she studied for a diploma in hospitality at the Central Institute of Technology, Upper Hutt.[5]

Career

After completing her studies, Galetti worked at Lower Hutt restaurant Timothy's. The owner sent her to cooking competitions in Australia, America and Europe, and she began to look for a position in London by sending her CV to top restaurateurs. The first offer she received was from Michel Roux Jr – a beginning position as first commis at his two-Michelin-starred restaurant Le Gavroche, well below her position in Wellington as chef de partie.[5] However, she accepted the offer and moved to London in 1999. She worked rapidly through the sections of the kitchen and became senior sous-chef, a position she held until 2015.[6][7][8] She was the first woman to hold such a senior position at the restaurant.[5]

While working for Roux, she launched, and was Head Chef of, the restaurant Le Gavroche des Tropiques in Mauritius.[9]

She has been a judge on the BBC series MasterChef: The Professionals since 2009, as well as a presenter on other food-related television programmes.[10]

In 2017, along with her husband David, she opened a new restaurant in London called Mere. This was achieved with backing from Westbury Street Holdings chairman Alastair Storey.[11]

Galetti serves as a UK Tourism Ambassador for Samoa.[1] She appeared in the BBC’s radio programme Desert Island Discs on 31 January 2021.[12]

Publications
  • Galetti, Monica (2012), Monica's Kitchen, Quadrille Publishing, ISBN 978-1849491037[13]

Personal life

In 2004, Galetti married French-born sommelier David Galetti, the Head Sommelier at Le Gavroche.[14] They have one daughter, born in 2006.[2]

References
  1. "Chef Monica Galetti – MasterChef Elite". samoafood.com. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  2. "Kiwi chef: Moving from Samoa to NZ was the saddest time of my life". The New Zealand Herald. 17 June 2014. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  3. "My Secret Life: Monica Galetti, chef, 35". The Independent. 13 November 2010. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  4. "Chef Monica Galetti on Samoa, Sean Connery, and her life in travel | Loop Samoa". www.loopsamoa.com. 21 November 2015. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  5. Jewell, Stephen (26 March 2011). "Monica Galetti: Kitchen mistress". The New Zealand Herald. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  6. "Le Gavroche – The Team". Le-gavroche.co.uk. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  7. Rayner, Jay (22 January 2011). "Michel Roux Jr and Monica Galetti: master and protege". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  8. "MasterChef's Monica Galetti leaves Le Gavroche". Thecaterer.com. 20 March 2015. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  9. "Strictly come cooking with Masterchef's Monica Galetti". London Evening Standard. 4 November 2010. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  10. BBC Two – MasterChef: The Professionals – Episode guide
  11. "Monica Galetti to open Mere in January 2017". Thecaterer.com. 7 October 2016. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  12. "Desert Island Discs: Monica Galetti, chef and restaurateur". BBC News Online. 31 January 2021. Retrieved 6 February 2021.
  13. "Chef live chat: Monica Galetti". The Guardian. 16 October 2012. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  14. "The Team". Le Gavroche. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
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