Marcia Sanchez

Executive Chef & Certified Sommelier 

Preserving Harvest Catering was an idea Marcia often thought of for many nights after working feverishly under other catering companies. Despite working for others, Marcia fought to create a company of her own. Having over 10 years of experience in both the restaurant (she worked in several Michelin Starred restaurants) and catering industry as a Chef prepared her to branch off on her own. Oddly enough, Marcia's successful career began in law. Although Marcia thoroughly enjoyed working in law, she was determined to make a change in her career. 

She decided to enroll in the Classic Culinary Arts program at the French Culinary Institute (now known as the International Culinary Center or ICC). She completed the program in 2011 but decided to continue taking other courses offered by ICC. In 2012, Marcia enrolled in the Intensive Sommelier Course to obtain a certification. She finished the program and obtained both the Level 1 and Level 2 (Intro and Certified Sommelier) certification from the Court of Master Sommeliers. 

Being a scholar for life is something Marcia enjoyed and shortly thereafter, she took the Restaurant Management Course at ICC. She had the opportunity to gain insight from industry experts such as Tom Colicchio and Michael Chernow. Marcia sought to expand her knowledge in business and seized another opportunity-she enrolled in the FastTrac NewVenture Program offered by the New York City Department of Small Business Services. 

During her time in the program, Marcia directed all of her efforts to opening her company and the end result was Preserving Harvest Catering. She honored her roots and integrated her butchering techniques and love and passion of other cuisines to create truly eclectic menus. Marcia prides herself in crafting menus that speak to her clients' needs as well as her vision. Marcia continues to playfully experiment with ideas and is often found on her laptop energetically creating menus from scratch. 

Mandy Sanchez 

Certified Sommelier & Beverage Manager

Mandy joined Marcia and Preserving Harvest Catering as the second Partner in 2016. When Marcia created the company, she sought an individual that was well rounded, passionate, and versatile. Mandy's background in business and HR and experience in the restaurant industry made her a suitable candidate for the company. 

Mandy always dreamt of working in the restaurant industry as a chef but decided that pursuing a business degree was much suitable. She obtained her degree in business with a concentration in HR from the University at Buffalo in 2012. A year later, she decided to attend the International Culinary Center's Intensive Sommelier program after being convinced by her family. She obtained her Level 1 and 2 Certification from the Court of Master Sommeliers in 2014. Shortly after, she worked as a Sommelier at a highly acclaimed Michelin Starred restaurant. 

Although Mandy enjoyed working in the restaurant industry, she longed to be a part of a unique project-something that will allow her to apply her knowledge of beverages to create unique pairings and menus of her own. Part of her role at Preserving Harvest has been to establish relationships with distributors, producers, and businesses to select products that align with Marcia's eclectic menu. To date, Mandy has been working on a couple of exciting projects she is hoping to unveil in the next few months.