Private chef or restaurant: which is better?

Cost per person

With a private chef the price is per person and covers the shopping, cooking, table service and cleaning up the kitchen. For groups of 5 or more there are three indicative bands: Gustosa at €40-60, Tentazione at €60-90 and Esclusiva at €90-110 per person. For up to 4 people prices start from €80-120 per person, because the chef’s work is shared across fewer guests.

At a restaurant the bill depends heavily on the place, the number of courses and what you order, so a straight comparison in euros would not be honest. It is more useful to look at what you are paying for: at home the price is agreed in advance, with one menu for the whole group; at a restaurant you pay at the end, dish by dish.

In both cases drinks are a separate matter. With a private chef wine and drinks are not included, so you can serve bottles you already have or ask for the sommelier service for pairings.

What is included and how the evening changes

The main difference is that the chef works only for you. The menu starts from your request: the occasion, the number of guests, tastes and allergies. Chefs reply with menu proposals by email and you choose the one you like.

At a restaurant you choose from the same menu as every other diner, at the pace of the dining room and the other tables.

• Ingredient shopping done by the chef
• Cooking and plating in your own kitchen
• Table service during the meal
• Kitchen cleaned up at the end
• Drinks not included, with a separate sommelier service available

Privacy, travel and timing

At home nobody is listening from the next table and nobody asks you to free up the table for the second sitting. That is why many people choose a private chef for anniversaries, proposals, confidential business dinners or family birthdays.

There is no travelling: no parking, no taxi home, nobody skipping the wine because they are driving. If you are on holiday in a villa or somewhere remote, that alone can make the difference.

Children, diets and allergies

With children a dinner at home is often more relaxed: they can leave the table, play or go to bed while the adults carry on. You can ask the chef for simpler dishes for them.

Allergies, intolerances and diets (vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free) go in the request from the start, so the chef builds the menu around them rather than adapting a dish designed for someone else.

When a restaurant is still the right choice

A private chef has to be booked at least 6 days ahead, and earlier for special dates or groups. If you decide on the evening itself, a restaurant is simpler.

A restaurant is also more practical if there are two of you and you want to go out, if you have no usable kitchen, or if you enjoy the atmosphere of a dining room. A private chef is at its best with groups, celebrations and evenings where the home is part of the experience.