For a busy family, a private chef takes dinner off the list of things to figure out. Your dedicated chef plans the menu with you, shops, cooks in your kitchen on the days you choose, stores everything, and resets the kitchen before leaving. Here is what that looks like across a real week.
Most families do not struggle with knowing what healthy food looks like. They struggle with 5:30 on a Tuesday: practice ends at six, someone has homework, and nobody has decided what is for dinner. A private chef solves that hour by handling everything that comes before it.
Before the first week: one conversation
It starts with a consultation. We ask how many people you are feeding, what your kids will and will not eat, any allergies or dietary goals, how your weeknights actually run, and which days work for a cooking visit. Then we match you with one chef. Each A Perfect Fit chef serves only a few households and is never rotated between clients, so the person who learns your family is the person who keeps cooking for it.
Sunday: the menu
Your chef sends the coming week's menu on Sunday for you to review. This is the moment to flag the busy nights, a guest coming to town, or the dish your youngest refused last time. Swap anything you like. You approve every menu before anything is bought.
Cooking day
Your chef arrives with the groceries, shopped fresh around your preferences from stores such as Whole Foods Market and Dierbergs and local farmers when the season allows. Groceries are a pass-through with no upcharge. Then your chef cooks in your own kitchen. Whether you are home or out during the visit is entirely up to you; we set it up around your privacy and your routine.
Before leaving, your chef stores everything so the fridge is easy to read at a glance, then cleans up and resets the kitchen. When you walk in that evening, dinner is already done.
A sample week
Every family's week looks different. Here is one example of how a menu can fit around school, practices and work:
- Cooking day: herb-roasted chicken with lemony orzo and roasted broccolini, ready the night the chef visits.
- Practice night: turkey taco bowls with toppings set out separately, so everyone builds their own in ten minutes.
- Late-meeting night: salmon with Dijon and whole-grain mustard over cauliflower purée, with a simpler plain salmon portion for younger kids.
- Lighter night: roasted chicken salad with dates, carrots, pumpkin seeds and goat cheese in a shallot-Dijon vinaigrette.
- Friday: a family pizza night, with dough, sauce and toppings ready to assemble and bake together.
- Mornings and after school: chorizo meatball breakfast bowls for the adults, plus cut fruit, vegetables and hummus within reach for the kids.
See more of what our chefs cook on our sample menu.
Cooking for kids and picky eaters
Family menus work best when one meal can flex. Your chef can keep sauces on the side, serve components separately, and make a milder version of a dish without cooking a second dinner. Over a few weeks, your chef learns which new foods land and which to retire, and quietly works more vegetables into the ones your kids already like.
Allergies and dietary goals
When someone in the house has a food allergy, a medical diet or a specific goal, the menu is built around it from the start rather than adjusted at the last minute. For families who want it, our registered dietitian plans the menu and your chef cooks it. We never prescribe or adjust medication. Learn more about our nutrition counseling.
What changes week to week
Your feedback shapes every menu. Tell your chef what the family loved, what came back untouched and what is coming up on the calendar. Your schedule can flex with the season too: more help during a busy school stretch, a different cooking day around travel. Keeping a steady rhythm is also how you keep your chef, since each chef's week is built around the few families they serve.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to be home while the chef cooks?
Only if you want to be. Some families like to be around during the visit; others prefer to be at work or school. We are flexible and set it up around your privacy and what works for your household.
Will my kids actually eat it?
Your chef starts from the foods your kids already like and builds from there, with sauces and sides served separately so everyone can make their own plate.
How much food does a chef make in one visit?
It depends on your household size and how many meals you want covered. Your proposal is built around that, and you can change it as your needs change.
Does the same chef come every time?
Yes. Your chef is dedicated to your household and is never rotated between clients.
Can the chef also cook for a dinner party or the holidays?
Yes. Your chef can cook for celebrations through our private entertaining service. See Hosting the holidays at home with a private chef.
Get your weeknights back
A Perfect Fit is a health-focused private chef service in St. Louis, Dallas, Houston, Nashville and Austin. Wondering what it costs? Read How much does a private chef cost?, or bring these questions to a short conversation. Request a consultation to start.
— Rachael Lewis, Founder & CEO, A Perfect Fit