Ray's on the Creek Picks Albertario as its Executive Chef

Matt Albertario joins Ray's on the Creek as its executive chef, the Alpharetta restaurant announced today.

He grew watching his mother and grandmother in the kitchen. His interest in cooking led him to attend culinary school at Kendall College in Evanston, Ill. and pursue his passion.

“Cooking was always an affair with my Italian family,” he said. “I fell in love with the kitchen and always knew that was where I wanted a career.”

From his first job as a teenager making pizzas in a local pizzeria to his current role as executive chef of Ray’s on the Creek, Albertario has always thrived off of the pressure and fast-paced nature of working in a kitchen environment.

Prior to joining Ray’s Restaurants, Albertario worked in Chicago as a sous chef at several different private country clubs until moving to Atlanta in 2006 to serve as the executive chef at Wildfire. After six years of running the kitchen at the Dunwoody restaurant, he started at Ray’s on the River as executive sous chef before joining the Ray’s on the Creek team.              

“My philosophy is ‘KISS’ – keep it simple, stupid,” he said. “I love preparing beautiful food made with quality ingredients, and nothing is more gratifying than seeing customers happy with their meal.”

The Chicago native and die-hard Chicago Bears fan currently lives with his wife in Canton. An animal lover, the chef and his wife rescued two pitbulls and regularly volunteered for the Animal Heartline Humane Association in Chicago.