Chapter 1: What is a Personal Chef?
Chapter 1: What is a Personal Chef?
Before we begin exploring how to open and run a successful personal chef business, let us explore why people would choose to use a personal chef to prepare meals and examine what a personal chef is and does in more detail.
In this chapter, you will learn about the activities of a personal chef and understand why this service is essential for many families today. You will also learn about the importance of specializing in certain cuisines or diets and identify some of the personal and professional traits that can help make you a successful personal chef. This will help you make sure that a career as a personal chef is right for you and help you prepare to enter the world of personal chef service.
The Growing Need for Personal Chefs
The popularity of using personal chefs to provide ready-to-eat meals has increased dramatically as families have become busier and have begun taking on obligations that were unheard of a few decades ago.
In today’s society, it is not uncommon for both spouses to balance career and family, in addition to social obligations and other tasks. Working adults find it more difficult than ever to find enough time to meet all of their obligations.
Single-parent families are also becoming more common, with one parent acting as the sole breadwinner, homework help expert, and chauffeur of the household. After a long day of dropping the children off at school, spending the day at work, and running the kids to after-school activities and little league practice, it is difficult for working adults to find the time and energy to create home cooked meals at all, let alone ones that are low fat, nutritionally balanced, and full of fresh ingredients.
As a result, many families end up resorting to fast food meals that they can simply pick up on the way home from work. Others rely on pre-packaged frozen entrees that can be thrown in the oven. Although these types of meals are quick solutions for busy parents who need to feed themselves and their children on the go, the foods that comprise these meals generally lack nutritional value, contain ingredients that are detrimental to the health of the parents and children, and add fuel to the obesity epidemic sweeping across the United States and many other developed countries.
As a personal chef, you can provide a much healthier alternative that is convenient, quick, and simple for the family on the go to heat and eat. Imagine how valuable you can be to busy families as a personal chef by providing tasty, nutritional alternatives to fast food fare and frozen meals that have sat in the supermarket freezer case for an undeterminable length of time.
By lending your expertise to busy families as a personal chef, you can provide your customer with an invaluable service by using your knowledge, experience, and passion for food to provide them with delicious meals for each week.
Many personal chefs add even more value to their culinary services by specializing in various cuisines and dietary needs to best use their strengths as a chef. This also helps build a sustainable business, because they can attract a niche segment of the people who need the services of a personal chef. Specializing also gives you more opportunity to create the types of food you enjoy creating the most, which can significantly increase your career satisfaction and attract clients who appreciate your enthusiasm and passion.
It is important to remember when starting a personal chef business that you have room to be creative and to make the business meet your own personal vision. No two personal chefs are alike, and your creativity is a factor that will help you retain your clients and receive referrals for new clients. Although this book will give you a blueprint for launching and building your personal chef business, it is important that you work with the ideas in this book and modify them as necessary to complement your personal culinary vision, so you can begin to create the business of your dreams.
What Does a Personal Chef Do?
A personal chef creates meals that are ready for his or her clients to eat when they return home after work, school, and other obligations. A personal chef may also create meals that are packaged and refrigerated or frozen so clients can simply heat the meals and have them on the dinner table in a matter of minutes.
A personal chef works closely with his or her clients to provide tasty and nutritional meals that meet the clients’ personal needs and tastes. One way personal chefs make sure their clients are satisfied is to frequently communicate with the clients to form and adjust meal plans. Asking for input and suggestions from customers is one of the best ways to maintain long-term client relationships, not only because you will be better able to cater to their preferences, but because your clients will appreciate the fact that you have their best interests in mind when planning and preparing their meals. You might also have to conduct significant research on particular diets, health conditions, or religious beliefs to be able to cater to the clients’ specialized tastes and needs.
Many personal chefs cook the meals in the clients’ kitchens and package them so they can be frozen and reheated at the client’s meal time. Meals are typically packaged with detailed instructions so clients only have to follow minimal preparation requirements to complete the meal. Many clients appreciate this arrangement for two reasons: first, because they know where the meal was prepared – some people who need personal chef services have reservations about eating meals that are prepared in the chef’s home, because they do not have the opportunity to make sure the cooking environment is sanitary; second, because when they sit down to dinner, they will not have to worry about having you in their house – this gives the clients the ability to have some private time with their families.
A personal chef differs from a private chef because he or she works for multiple clients rather than being limited to one client. A personal chef can also offer his or her services for a much more affordable price than a private chef. The result is a chef service that is accessible and appealing to more customers. This is because a personal chef can provide professionally prepared meals at a price that is affordable to the average person and still provide customers with the luxury of professionally prepared meals.
As a personal chef, you will also be required to take into consideration your clients’ specific dietary needs and restrictions and to select ingredients for your clients’ meals based on those needs and restrictions. We will talk more in depth about this in Chapter 9.
Personal chefs can also provide cooking classes in the client’s home or in the community. In addition to giving you extra income, this service can help establish you as a culinary authority in your community. Conducting classes is also a good way to obtain referrals for your personal chef services because attendees who enjoy your classes will want their families and friends to experience your culinary genius as well.
Some chefs choose to specialize in either catering for special events or providing meals for several different customers. No matter what the event or whom you are working with, it is important to establish a meal plan with each customer.
Establishing a meal plan and reviewing it with your client helps to ensure that you, as the personal chef, are providing the types of food and variety that your customer desires. This can be especially helpful in getting to know a new client’s preferences and expectations.
It is imperative that you learn about any religious or health-related dietary restrictions or food allergies your client might have. Sometimes a client is unfamiliar with every ingredient that makes up a specific dish and might not realize that the food they are allergic to is included in their entree. Some food allergies are potentially fatal. It is imperative that you avoid using ingredients that could cause your client to have an allergic reaction.
After you set up the meal plans, they should be submitted to the client for approval. Once the meals are approved, the chef will complete the shopping for all food items involved and will prepare the food for the client, usually in the client’s own kitchen.
Taking time to create a detailed list before going to the store will prevent you from having to improvise or make an emergency trip to the store. This is especially important if you will be using your client’s kitchen because you will have a limited amount of time to prepare the food. Being prepared is also critical to managing your time, especially as your clientele grows.
If you are working with several families on an ongoing basis, often you will go to the client’s home once a week – or once every other week – and prepare the meals in the client’s kitchen. The meals will then be available for the client to heat and eat at their desired meal time. Be sure to familiarize yourself with the client’s kitchen before showing up to prepare your first batch of meals.
It might be helpful for you to provide your client with a comment card each week. Comment cards are a quick and convenient way for your clients to provide feedback on your services.
What Qualities Does a Successful Personal Chef Need?
As with any profession, a personal chef career is not right for everyone. A personal chef must possess, or cultivate, certain traits in order to be successful. If you have a passion for cooking and truly desire to be a personal chef, any of these traits can be learned and developed.
One of these traits is the love and passion for food. A successful personal chef must love to cook and bring life to their food. Many clients who hire a personal chef are passionate about food, but do not have the time to prepare food that lives up to their expectations. A good personal chef recognizes the client’s passion for food and uses his or her ability to cook with creativity and flair to make each meal a culinary adventure.
Another trait a personal chef must possess, or develop, is people skills. Although one of the many advantages to having a personal chef business is the freedom to be creative, the customer must always come first. A good personal chef always listens to the customer’s wants and needs and does their absolute best to provide an outstanding meal for each client. If you do not always agree with a client’s ideas or suggestions, learn to compromise and offer solutions.
A personal chef must be creative and develop their own recipes and dishes to fit the client’s individual preferences and needs. Some clients will be harder to please than others. As a personal chef, you must always act professionally. Always listen to your client’s concerns and be prepared to offer solutions. Ask for feedback and accept constructive criticism to keep your clients happy and build your clientele.
As a personal chef, it is imperative that you listen to your clients. Provide a questionnaire or sit down with the client and make notes about the client’s personal needs and expectations. If the client is unhappy with a meal, it is important to listen to what the client did and did not like and work out a solution to prevent repeating the mistake. Always submit meal plans in a timely manner so your clients will have adequate time to review and approve the menu. Some clients will be more difficult to please than others.
Another important trait a personal chef must either have or develop is excellent time-management skills. As a personal chef, you will be working on your own, with no boss to hold you accountable or time clock to punch. Although this might seem appealing to you, it is important to remain disciplined and manage your time effectively. Time management will become even more important as you grow your business and take on more clients.
Where Does a Personal Chef Work?
Many personal chefs work in the kitchens of their clients, rather than preparing meals in their own kitchens. Most chefs set up a time with their client and go to the client’s house once a week or once every other week and prepare the food in the client’s kitchen. This eliminates the need for transporting finished entrees and reduces the chance of food getting destroyed, damaged, or contaminated in transit.
Cooking in your client’s kitchen does pose some difficulties. Sometimes, clients may not have the items you need to prepare a certain dish. It also might be difficult to locate items in an unfamiliar kitchen. Ask your client to give you a tour of their kitchen before your first cooking appointment. Also, create a portable kitchen kit that contains critical items that your client may not own. Your client is probably not a professional chef himself and probably does not have every item that a culinary expert views as critical in preparing a meal.
Some personal chefs prefer to cook in their own kitchens and deliver the food to the client. This eliminates the need to transport equipment. Another major advantage to using your own kitchen is that you do not have to familiarize yourself with each client’s kitchen. Transporting the food to your client’s home does, however, provide the need for a business vehicle large enough to safely transport items. As we mentioned earlier, it also provides the risk of food becoming damaged, destroyed, or contaminated while in transit.
If your intention is to build a larger business, hire employees, and specialize in catering, you might want to consider renting a kitchen space. Renting a space will provide more room for multiple employees to work at the same time. Renting a space will also provide extra room for meeting with customers who want to sample your product before contracting your services.
As with choosing to cook in your own kitchen, renting a space will also require a proper vehicle in which to safely transport food items. Renting a space also involves more expense and overhead because you will be paying for the space.
When choosing where you want to work, consider your needs and specialties. No one option is best for everyone. If you want to keep your practice somewhat small, working in your own kitchen or your client’s kitchen may be the better way to go. But, if you want to provide a place to meet with your clients and provide samplings of your work or you envision a larger business with multiple employees, renting a larger area could be the way to go.
What Areas Can a Personal Chef Specialize In?
As a personal chef, you are your own boss, so your possibilities of specialization are virtually endless. You have the freedom to specialize to meet your passions. Specializing also allows you to target a more specific market that is looking for your specific service and variety.
One area of specialization is catering. You can choose to cater for large or small groups. You can also target your marketing to reach either organizations or families. You can provide your catering services for weddings, small dinner parties, corporate banquets, anniversary parties, or reunions.
The catering business is one of the fastest growing areas in the food service industry. The more you build your reputation as a caterer, the more demand you will be in. The best news is that you need not limit yourself to just catering. Some personal chefs choose to work as personal chefs in their client’s homes as well as provide catering services on a case-by-case basis.
When beginning your personal chef business, you can also choose to specialize in working with clients with specific dietary needs. Clients with health-restricted diets, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, require a special diet to maintain their health and well-being. Perhaps you have specific health-related dietary restrictions of your own or have had to cook for a family member who has had dietary restrictions. Your expertise and specialization can place you in high demand for those who need help in the kitchen but might be fearful that a personal chef will not understand or adhere to their specific dietary needs. You can also use your expertise in this area to provide food that is not lacking in flavor.
If you have a specific ethnic food that you are passionate about cooking, consider specializing in that food. Your expertise will appeal to clients who are either of that ethnicity and prefer to eat familiar foods, or who particularly enjoy the type of ethnic food you specialize in. If you feel limited by choosing one ethnic food and have a special talent with several types of ethnic food, you can choose to specialize in each of your favorite ethnic foods.
If you are a vegetarian or vegan, you might feel limited by the vegetarian and vegan food options currently available at your local restaurants. If you like to experiment with creating flavorful foods that are vegetarian and vegan, a specialization in vegetarian and vegan meals would give you the opportunity to provide tasty vegetarian and vegan meals to your clientele. In turn, you would appeal to your clientele by offering them flavor-filled vegetarian and vegan meals that personal chefs who primarily cook with meat and animal products could not provide.
If you like to teach others how to cook, you could specialize in providing cooking lessons. These lessons can be in the client’s home or can be scheduled by the chef and open to the public at the location the chef chooses. These cooking lessons can be tailored to your personal specialties and expertise and can help you meet potential clients in the community.
With a significant segment of the population becoming increasingly health conscious, many clients are interested in organic diets. Some clients, although wanting an organic diet, do not know where to begin. A chef who specializes in organic foods and already has expertise is invaluable to these clients. If you choose organic foods as your specialty, you can take the burden off your clients by shopping for organic foods and preparing these foods to maximize taste and flavor. Organic foods are sometimes hard to find and are costly. With your expertise, you can cut the client’s food cost by researching organic food suppliers and finding the best price for organic foods.
Perhaps your passion is preparing low-fat, low-calorie meals that are tasty but do not pack on extra pounds. With the growing obesity epidemic in the United States, many people wish to lose extra pounds, but do not want to sacrifice taste. Many pre-packaged diet entrees and foods provided by diet plans lack taste. Many of these meals are also small in portion size, leaving the consumer hungry. By using your specialty to create flavor-filled food in reasonably sized portions, you are not only feeding your passion for cooking but offering your clients a way to live healthier without sacrificing excellent-tasting food.
The possibilities are endless when choosing a specialization. It is important to remember that choosing a specialization does not limit you to working only for the clientele that is drawn to your particular specialization. However, choosing a niche can set you apart from other personal chefs and will draw in a clientele that is interested in the special services you can provide. Your specialty can also make you invaluable to your clients because you are providing them with foods that might be time consuming or difficult for them to prepare.
Who Hires Personal Chefs?
Every person who hires a personal chef is different. Many either do not have the time to cook or simply do not enjoy cooking, so if they have the means to do so, they hire a personal chef to take the burden off them and save their time for other things.
Other clients might have dietary needs that make it difficult to cook flavorful food. These clients go to a personal chef because chefs have the expertise necessary to create foods within their dietary guidelines without sacrificing flavor.
The service you provide as a personal chef is very valuable and important to your customers. Many customers will be drawn to you because of your specialization or because they have heard about your work from other clients and want to try it for themselves.