"life is a piece of cake - enjoy every layer!"


​Cynthia Ferris-Bennett,

Founder & Owner of Sierra Chef

​ Cynthia Ferris-Bennett is the Owner and Chef at Sierra Chef located in beautiful, historic Genoa, Nevada. Cynthia's family roots run deep in the Carson Valley as her family has been here since 1869. With a love of cooking and over 30 years of event design, planning, coordination, and marketing Cynthia semi-retired and started her Sierra Chef adventure.

Cynthia is a past President of Weddings of the West belongs to the Carson Valley Chamber of Commerce and works with charitable organizations in and around the Carson Valley. In 2018 Cynthia was chosen by the Sierra Nevada Republican Woman as their Entrepreneur of the Year. Cynthia and the Sierra Chef team were honored in 2019 by being selected as the Douglas County Spotlight Award for Retail.  In 2023 Sierra Chef was chosen as the Business of the Year for Douglas County.  Cynthia has had the privilege of designing & coordinating events, for such clients as Al Davis, owner of the Oakland Raiders and the Grand opening of the United States Headquarters for Konami Gaming International. 

Clients also include Heavenly Resorts / Vail Resorts, Edgewood Companies, Southern Highlands Golf Club, Anthem Country Club, Peppermill Resort & Casino, Blue Angel Café & Chateau at Heavenly, Pilates Studio Lake Tahoe, Tahoe Vineyards, ServPro Tahoe, The White House Bed & Breakfast, 2012 - 2017 Lake Tahoe Summit, Berkeley Center for Theoretical Physics Retreat, Patra Corp, Greater Nevada Credit Union, Google, Okta Security, Mission Senior Living, 1047 Games, and Hot Air for Hope. 

Cynthia is also a contributing writer for The Nevada Appeal Food section and is featured on Outdoor Television for Cooking and Lifestyle segments.