Your practical guide to hosting a private chef at home

Hosting a private chef for the first time? Here's everything you need to know, from planning to the day itself — including a few important safety tips.

Before your event

Make sure your booking is actually confirmed. A booking is only confirmed once you've paid through the ChefMaison platform and received confirmation — in the app, by chat, and by email. If you haven't received that confirmation, don't assume the date is locked in.
Finalize the details with your chef. Use the chat to agree on:

• The final menu
• Number of guests, including any children
• Dietary needs or allergies
• Timing — when the chef will arrive and when you'd like to eat
• Any specific requests for the evening

Let your chef know what equipment you have. Send your chef a list of the kitchen equipment and appliances you already have at home. This helps them know exactly what to bring — and just as importantly, what not to bring, so nothing gets left behind that you actually needed.

Confirm the exact address in advance. Double-check the address with your chef before the day — sending a map link or dropping a pin is the safest way to do this. It's more common than you'd think for similar or identical addresses to exist in different locations, so a quick confirmation avoids your chef ending up at the wrong place.

Save your chef's contact number. Make sure you have a direct way to reach your chef on the day, in case anything comes up.

Keep communication going. If anything changes before your event — adding more guests, shifting the start time, a new dietary need — let your chef know as soon as possible. Good communication is key to a smooth event, and most changes are easy to accommodate the earlier your chef knows about them.

Prepare your space. Most chefs work fine with a standard home kitchen and bring their own tools — you don't need anything special. It helps to have your kitchen reasonably clear and accessible before the chef arrives.

Payment & safety — please read this carefully

This is the single most important thing to know: all payment must go through ChefMaison — never pay a chef directly, in cash or by any other method, off the platform.
If payment stays on the platform, your money is held securely and only released to the chef after your event takes place — this is what protects you throughout the entire process.
A few clear rules to protect yourself:

• Never pay a chef in cash or via bank transfer, PayPal, or any method outside ChefMaison's checkout.
• If a chef ever asks you to pay them directly, or to move your booking off the platform, decline and report it to us immediately at operations@chefmaison.com.
• Keep all communication inside the ChefMaison chat — this is also what allows us to help you if anything ever goes wrong.

See Why book through ChefMaison instead of arranging things directly with a chef? for more on why this matters.

What to expect on the day

1. Arrival. Your chef typically arrives ahead of time with the shopping already done, ready to start cooking.
2. Cooking. They'll prepare the meal in your kitchen, following the menu you agreed on together.
3. Service. Each course is served and explained at the table — you simply host and enjoy the evening with your guests.
4. Cleanup. Your chef cleans the kitchen and any areas used before leaving — many guests say it's left cleaner than they found it.

If something feels off

Trust your instincts. A few signs worth watching for:

• A chef asking for payment outside the platform, before or during the event.
• A chef trying to move communication to WhatsApp, email, or phone before your booking is confirmed.
• Anything that doesn't match what was agreed in your proposal once the event is underway.

If any of this happens, contact us right away at operations@chefmaison.com — the sooner we know, the more we can do to help.

After your event

• Report any issues within 24 hours. If anything didn't match what was agreed, see What happens if the chef doesn't deliver what was agreed? — there's a real time window for this, so don't wait.
• Leave a review. It only takes a minute and genuinely helps both future guests and your chef

💡 The golden rule: if it's not happening inside the ChefMaison app — payment, communication, agreements — it's not protected. Keep everything on the platform, and we've got you covered.

Updated on: 27/08/2026