Chef Ruben Pina of Honest to Goodness Personal Chef Services

Chef Ruben Piña, Jr

Growing up in San Antonio, Texas, I was inspired by my mother, grandfather and uncles who were always cooking for the family. After high school, I began cooking at the Hyatt Hill Country Resort. My focus there was on garde manger, smoking meats, and Tex-Mex cuisine.

Then, I moved to Seattle to pursue a formal education in French based culinary arts. This training included extensive education and experience in working with French pastries. Afterwards, I taught at some of the local colleges and worked at several different local restaurants in the Seattle area. There is a lot of creativity that goes into cooking and baking. During the holidays, I spend a lot of time baking so many Christmas cookies and other treats for friends and family.

I look forward to making wonderful, flavorful dishes for you and introducing you to new ideas and experiences in the kitchen. In particular, I love teaching people how to cook and bake. There are many topics I can present for Seattle cooking classes in the comforts of your home or a corporate lunch and learn.

Fun Fact about Chef Ruben

I enjoy woodworking and I LOVE cutting the grass.

Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing you will be successful.

Chef Ruben Dinner Party
Chef Ruben dinner party
Various types of holiday-themed cookies, including star-shaped, Santa faces, tree-shaped, round sugar-coated, and round cookies with jam centers, are arranged on baking trays. The delightful assortment showcases the joy of holiday baking at its finest.
Erin Haney, Pennsylvania
Erin Haney, Pennsylvania
"We hired a private chef from Honest to Goodness for our 10 person celebratory meal after our elopement, and I’m so glad we did! Ruben was our chef, and he was extremely professional and easy to work with. He listened to what we wanted for our meal, and offered multiple ideas. I seriously applaud him for coming into a random Airbnb and being able to put forth such an amazing meal with a bare bones kitchen. All of the food was so delicious, from our appetizers to our desserts! Our family was really blown away!! I cannot recommend working with Honest to Goodness and Chef Ruben enough!!"
E.G., Ballard
E.G., Ballard
"Chef Ruben has been great with communication and cooking delicious and healthy meals for our family. He works with us so we get meals that suit everyone in the family from the picky eater to the vegetarian kid with food allergies to the guy whose diet is dictated by needing healing foods that maintain his appetite. We are very, very pleased!"
M.M., Laurelhurst
M.M., Laurelhurst
"We were so excited to have Chef Ruben start. The food that he made was healthy and so flavorful - it completely exceeded our expectations! He was very friendly and left the kitchen clean."
E.C., Shoreline
E.C., Shoreline
"We utilized Honest to Goodness for weekly services to help us survive having a new baby and a toddler at home - we really loved how much easier everything was when someone else was doing the shopping, the meal prep, the cooking, the cleaning. Our favorite dishes from Chef Ruben [were] his lamb chops and steak. His banana bread and brownies [were] our son's favorites."
B.L., Seattle
B.L., Seattle
"Chef Ruben was great. Everything went so smoothly thanks to Ruben's attention to detail and help. We hope to work with you again in the future."
I.L., Seattle
I.L., Seattle
"We've been very pleased with Ruben. His menus always have good options and he accommodates our preferences (swapping out one ingredient for another, changing a side dish, etc). He is courteous and professional and we're happy with the service overall!"

See Chef Ruben in Action with this 3-Minute Meal Prep Video

A group of people are toasting with various cocktails and drinks at a social gathering, some savoring their mocktails as they embrace Dry January. The background shows a dimly lit, cozy setting.

Holiday Food Deliveries Available to Order!

Get a head start on planning for your holiday dishes for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, and New Year’s.

Skip the kitchen stress this year and leave the cooking to us!

Our chef team from Eats Amore has awesome-sauce appetizers, mains, sides, and desserts in store to grace your holiday tables and events. Portion sizes range to serve anywhere from 4-20 people per item. Our delivery range is 30 miles from Lynnwood, WA excluding zip codes requiring a ferry.

We also have virtual gift cards available to purchase throughout the year for any gift-giving occasions.