Sandra Hurtault’s Bio:

I was born in Rueil-Malmaison just 15 minutes outside of Paris and grew up in France. My grandfather was an aeronautical engineer and a certified chef with a passion for watercolor painting. My mom was a great natural artist and cook. I learned watching her and my Dad in the kitchen growing up, as they would cook for my brother and I every day. My parents had made it their mission to save us from the school canteen.

When I was about 10 years old, I started with baking and quickly evolved to working on fine dining presentation and flavor combinations. By the age of 16, I was presenting 3 tiers cakes and tasting menus. Cooking has always been an absolute joy and a safe place to recharge myself. I enjoy creating a menu and executing beautiful dishes. On the other end, I grew into an ambitious woman with very diverse interests from art to philosophy and devoted a lot of my time to furthering my education. At the time, I didn’t identify being a chef as a possible professional orientation. 

In 2009, I left France with a BA in Philosophy and took my first trip to California. I couldn’t be confined to the possibility of only knowing of Europe. After a couple years in San Diego spent learning English, getting my MBA and launching my career, I went back to France and soon after lived all over the world including the UAE and NZ as a finance executive. I enjoyed my career and its perks but real estate and finance were never my passion. 

Back in 2015, I had started becoming increasingly curious of what a vegan lifestyle could mean. After 6 months of detailed research, I became plant based overnight in early 2016. I was and I am still convinced this is the healthiest and most compassionate lifestyle someone can choose. While my meals were initially very simple and lacked nutritional balance, with time I learned to adapt my cooking skills to create incredibly tasty and nutritionally well balanced food. 

In 2017, I came back to the US with a new successful real estate venture. Ultimately, I chose to come back to the US and California as I feel the state embraces entrepreneurship and innovative ideas. In 2021, I decided it was time to transition to working in the vegan food industry. I chose to do it as a Personal Chef while I have faith there will be additional development opportunities to Ma Table Végane.  

As a Personal Chef, my dishes are inspired by my French and European heritage as well as my travels. They can fit any type of occasion and lifestyle. I pride myself in being knowledgeable in vegan nutrition and have experience catering to a wide range of nutritional needs and any allergic restrictions. I enjoy cooking exclusively with organic/pesticide free whole foods and minimally processed ingredients. Also, as a wine and liquor connoisseur, I like to offer wonderful pairings and include liquor and wines in my preparations. Rustic, elegant and well balanced organic vegan meals is what this venture stands for.

Vegan artistry is my passion and I hope to welcome you soon at Ma Table Végane.