Hiring a private chef has become a popular option for those who want to skip the queue and avoid dining out in crowded places. While COVID-19 restrictions on dining have been lifted for some time now, this trend shows no signs of abating. Even if you are not a fan of intimate dining, the sheer convenience of waiting for a trained professional to whip up a bespoke menu as you sit back and relax is hard to resist.

Buonissimo

Buonissimo is an online store that specialises in Italian gourmet food, wine, and grocery. They have expanded their services to include private chefs for casual or gourmet-style dinner. Expect to fork out HK$900 per person for their casual dinner set-up and HK$1,400 per person for gourmet-style (excluding chef’s fee). That already covers appetisers, pasta, one main course, and dessert. Buonissimo’s sources its products overseas, with deliveries twice every week to guarantee the items’ freshness.

Location: Buonissimo, Room 603, 6th floor, Shun Kwong Commercial Building,8 Des Voeus Road West, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong

Contact details: +852 6194 1155

Jia Catering 

Entrepreneur Yenn Wong’s Jia Group is offering Chefs at Home, an intimate dining experience that follows the same standard of services of its physical restaurants and bars. You can select from a range of regional cuisines such as Chinese, Thai, Balinese, Spanish, French, Italian, and American prepared and cooked by Hong Kong’s top chefs. This service accommodates intimate dinners and group gatherings. To inquire, fill out their form and wait for a representative to contact you.

Location: Jia Group, 2205, Universal Trade Centre, 3 Arbuthnot Road, Central, Hong Kong

Contact details:  info@jiagroup.co

MobiChef

Marketed as an alternative to dining out, MobiChef connects personal chefs with anyone on the hunt for a restaurant-like experience in their homes. Clients are given 184 menus to choose from, with options that cater to every cuisine, occasion, and party size. Their Big Party Menu, for example, consists of prawn cake, glass noodle with mixed seafood and minced pork salad, chicken and beef satays, grilled whole baby chicken, sour curry with acacia omelets and shrimps, stir fried spicy pork ribs, chicken pumpkin coconut curry, mango sticky rice, and coconut ice cream with crunchy water chestnut dices. This menu can satisfy 12 to 30 people and is priced at HK$520 per pax.

When you click on a menu, you will see the chef assigned to whip up your meal along with a few notes to prepare you and your kitchen prior to the event.

Location: MobiChef

Contact details: +852 6115 3175

Alfred’s

Food delivery service Alfred’s is offering Chef@home, their own take on personalised dining right in the comfort of your home. Renowned chefs Rafa Gil (La Rambla), Yohei Yamamoto (WAGYUMAFIA Hong Kong), Chiba Hirofumi (Sushi Mamoru), and John Nugent (The Diplomat) will lend their expertise to prepare a bespoke menu for you and your guests. For enquiries, you can email Alfred’s at info@alfreds.hk.

Location: Alfred’s

Contact details:+852 6976 1812

Ho La Ho Sik

A private chef who first learned how to cook by watching videos of Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsay, Christopher Ho now operates his private kitchen and is a part-owner of a French restaurant in Central. Ho’s cooking is inspired by local cultures and flavours where nostalgia and authenticity intertwine. You may message Ho on his Instagram page to book your event, but be sure to do it at least one month in advance as his schedule can get hectic.

Contact details:Ho La Ho Sik

Patio

Hosting intimate dining gatherings of up to a one to a few dozen guests, the refectory-style table at Patio lies as a main centerpiece that can be decorated to your heart's content, plus comfy couches and a modestly sized eponymous balcony patio make for a cushy yet classily understated setting. Chef to numerous Hong Kong stars, culinary icon Bernnie Chow is the mind behind this elusive yet intriguing spot.

Using international influences from his time travelling to craft up bespoke multi-course feasts, his dishes include elements of fusion dining and draws heavy inspiration from Southeast Asian cuisines. If you want to bring this delightful mélange of eats back to your own kitchen, stay tuned to Bernnie's social media to find out when his next cooking class is scheduled for, and to keep up with his publish of new recipes. Get in touch now by sending him a message on Facebook.

Location: Patio, Flat B 1/F, Hang Fat Trading House, 52 Bonham Strand W, Sheung Wan

Ta Pantry

Ta Pantry is founded and helmed by model-turned-chef, Esther Sham. She’s a Hong Kong born Shanghainese-American chef who started her professional career at three-Michelin starred L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, and then later developed her skills at The Landmark Oriental under the tutelage of chef Richard Ekkebus. Her passion for cooking began in her early career as a model which exposed her to indulgent food and fine wines, sparking her own latent culinary talents. Ta Pantry offers nostalgic dishes of all cuisine, including Thai, Chiu Chow, Japanese, and her own mixed menu inspired by top-quality ingredients. Visit Ta Pantry’s website for their private dining arrangements and make your booking.

Location: Ta Pantry, No. 1 A Start Street, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

Contact details: booking@tapantry.com

Tate Dining Room 

Private dining doesn’t get much finer than Tate Dining Room, where dining is treated as an artform expressed and consumed by all the senses. From space, lighting, plating, temperature, aroma, and flavour, these seemingly small details are what put Tate Dining Room on the Michelin Guide’s radar, earning its two Michelin stars earlier this year. Each dish from Tate turns into an ode to an ingredient, an intentional and unforgettable dining experience. Check out Tate Dining Room’s website for more information and reservations.

Location:Tate Dining Room,210 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong

Contact details: +852 9468 2172 / info@tate.com.hk

Segreto

With over 160 five-star reviews, Segreto (Italian for secret) brings you homemade, artisan, slow-cooked Italian food from the bay of Naples. Family recipes that can take up to 30 hours to cook are what make Segreto an acclaimed private dining venue. The man guarding the secrets is chef Ermanno Lelli, who has run F&B operations in Italy, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Canaray Islands, Slovenia, the U.S, England, and China – allowing him to test out which recipes work best for every palate imaginable. Visit Segreto’s website for more information or to book your exclusive private dining experience.

Location: Segreto, Shop A, M Floor, 2-4 Mee Lun Street Central Hong Kong

Contact details: +85267110822