TEMECULA, Calif. — (August 31, 2017) – Pechanga Resort & Casino, the #1 casino in the U.S. voted by readers of USA Today in 2015, has just named Krystle Schenk as the new Garde Manger Chef. With the resort/casino’s $285 million expansion underway, hiring managers are bringing on 350 new food and beverage team members, causing a shift in management and the need for additional chefs.

Chef Krystle has been with Pechanga since 2010, starting off as a line cook in the production kitchen and was quickly promoted to other positions at the Pechanga Buffet, Kelsey’s, and Garde Manger before she became its head chef. Prior to Pechanga, Krystle worked in the kitchen at a popular international hotel chain for five years and really honed in her best cooking techniques. She jumped straight into culinary school at The Art Institute of California at Orange County immediately after graduating high school, as she has thoroughly enjoyed the art of cooking since she was a child.

Pechanga is currently under a $285 million resort expansion set to open at the end of the year. It includes the addition of 568 rooms and suites, 70,000 additional square feet of indoor event space, a luxury, two-story spa and salon, a 4 ½ -acre resort pool complex, and two new restaurants. This spring, Pechanga celebrated the grand opening of the brand new 2,400-space parking garage featuring 44 electric vehicle charging stations and three Tesla Superchargers, marking the completion of the first phase of the expansion. Enough solar to power 100 homes along with a moving sidewalk to the casino entrance will be added to the new East Parking Garage this fall.

Outside of being a master chef, you’ll find Chef Krystle spending time with her husband and their seven-year-old son who both also enjoy cooking.