When it’s time to throw your next party, consider the Guest-Chef. ™

We’re not traditional caterers. Rather, we are cooks who come to you to share our knowledge, skills, and culinary enthusiasms.

Our experience—in kitchens, gardens, and marketplaces—ranges from the New World to the Old, from California Wine Country and Boston’s North End to the Mediterranean, Middle East, and India.

We’re food historians and published authors—we know how to inform and entertain. Get a taste of how we cook by dipping into our two food blogs, Almost Italian and Sarasota Soundings. We’re big on Italian and Turkish. In fact, not long ago, we held classes in both those cuisines for Whole Foods Market, here in Sarasota.

Do you like to cook yourself? Want to learn specific dishes or techniques? Perhaps you’d enjoy a private, hands-on cooking class—or maybe you and your friends would like to gather to watch us prepare a meal that you can all enjoy together in the intimacy of your own home.

Here’s how we work:

During a complimentary consultation, together, we’ll plan your class, demonstration and/or menu.

We shop for the required groceries (including beverages), then do the prep work and cooking in your kitchen.

If it’s a class or demonstration, you and your friends will want to be there. As we work, we’ll answer questions and tell you about the cultural context of the food we’re preparing.

If it’s a dinner party to dazzle your friends or win over the boss, a new client, or your mother-in-law, we can simply prepare the food and vanish, leaving you and your guests to enjoy fine dining at home without fuss. One of us is a gardener and loves to do floral arrangements… We’re also happy to recommend and procure appropriate wines to accompany your menu.

Unlike traditional caterers, who charge a price-per-guest, we simply charge a fee for our time. Regardless of your number of classmates or guests, the rate is $65 per hour.

We charge this rate for shopping and food prep as well as for the actual cooking time. We do not charge for travel time, but simply ask for mileage reimbursal at the current IRS business rate (between Tampa and Naples).

You can give us a budget, or when you’ve chosen a menu, we’ll estimate food and beverage costs for you. We are smart shoppers and know where to find things at fair prices. When it’s all over, we present you with a tally of the actual costs of any ingredients, flowers, beverages—and our mileage. You simply reimburse us.

Gift Certificates

Or…give the gift of the Guest-Chef ™. Would your sister-in-law and five of her best friends like to learn how to make the perfect risotto? Perhaps you’d like to express your thanks to a special client who enjoys fine food. Or maybe you’d like to organize a party centered on home-made pasta. Call or e-mail to learn about Guest-Chef ™ gift certificates.

It’s all possible. Just ask the Guest-Chef ™.

To arrange a consultation, call Skip Lombardi at 941.539.9727 or
E-Mail: skip@guest-chef.com or holly@guest-chef.com