Career
Michael Ferraro’s culinary career began early on, inspired by his Southern Italian parents and their love and respect for quality and tradition.  After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America at age 20, Ferraro sought opportunities to further develop his own creativity. 

Ferraro’s culinary repertoire flourished during an internship under Chef Waldy Malouf at Beacon Restaurant, followed by Jean-Georges’ Mercer Kitchen as Chef de Partie, where he developed and refined his culinary techniques.  He proceeded to New York City’s famed 5-star, 5-diamond Four Seasons Hotel where he served as Chef Tournant. It was there where he extended his skills to all outlets of the hotel, landing him at its fine dining restaurant, Fifty Seven Fifty Seven, pleasing the palettes of the restaurant’s most exclusive clientele.  After spending 3 years with the Four Seasons, Ferraro went on to take the role of Executive Sous Chef at the Biltmore Room, working under Chef Gary Robins.  At the Biltmore Room, Ferraro was exposed to the creative expressions of Chef Gary Robins’ use of Asian and progressive American cooking techniques.  When the Biltmore room closed, Ferraro took top toque as Chef de Cuisine at Patina Restaurant Groups’ Café Centro, followed by his first Executive Chef position at fine dining seafood establishment, Fresh in Tribeca.

In 2008, Ferraro took over the kitchen at the recently-opened SoHo restaurant Delicatessen, where he elevated the cuisine to its current state, continuing to update the menu seasonally and reflecting his most recent travels.  Ferraro’s vast menu of international comfort food ranged from foie gras to fried chicken.

Ferraro opened macbar in the fall of 2009, a restaurant fully dedicated to gourmet macaroni & cheese. Located behind sister restaurant Delicatessen, macbar had a menu full of unique flavors including standouts like Mayan Chipotle, Mac Quack and the infamous Mac Lobsta’ that sprung the lobster mac n’ cheese craze which originated at macbar. In 2019, after an 11 year run at 54 Prince St., Ferraro and his partners decided to sell the spaces.

Today, Chef Michael Ferraro can be found spearheading new projects and revamping existing concepts for Charlie Palmer Collective in his role as Corporate Chef working along side Chef Charlie Palmer. Ferraro’s first project with The Collective partners him with the Durst Organization at WellPlated, a 33,000 sq ft artisanal food hall at the Nasdaq building on 42nd St.

Cooking Around the World
Chef Ferraro has infused flavors from his global travels – to France, Italy, Spain, Russia, Columbia, Iceland and more – into his dishes at Delicatessen, bringing acclaim from journalists and diners alike.  His travels have also blended with media on occasion, when his trip to Taiwan was filmed and documented into a show for the Discovery Channel (U.S.) and Discovery World (Canada).  

National Recognition
A member of Zagat’s inaugural class of “30 Under 30” in 2011, Ferraro has since established himself as an authority within the culinary industry. In 2018 President of The Culinary Institute of America Dr. Tim Ryan named Chef Ferraro an ambassador to the school after Chef Ferraro delivered the commencement speech at his alma mater. He has participated in multiple Food and Wine Festivals, both nationally and internationally, including numerous wins in New York City Wine and Food Festival.

He has also been featured on many national TV networks such as CBS, ABC, NBC, VH1, WPIX, Travel Channel, Iron Chef America and Chopped on Food Network, and the Cooking Channel. Chef Ferraro has also appeared as a judge on Food Network’s Beat Bobby Flay, as well as a reoccurring Chef Expert alongside Jon Taffer on Spike TV’s hit series Bar Rescue.

Giving Back
Outside of the restaurant, Ferraro works with the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, Savor Health and Celgene on their initiative Cooking. Comfort. Care., a program to provide nutritional resources, tips and recipes for the caregivers and patients dealing with the disease.  A cause close to his heart, Cooking. Comfort. Care. allows him to channel his culinary expertise for the aid of those in need.

@CHEFMICHAELNYC