Cincinnati Personal Chefs Cincinnati, OH

Cincinnati personal chefs discuss their services

What services do you offer?

Jaime Carmody: "The main service is the in-home meal preparation. I have lots of other services, too. We do intimate dinner parties, birthday dinners, anniversaries, holiday meals, box lunches and appetizer parties."

Debbie Spangler: "I go into people's homes and cook and prepare enough meals for anything from a week to a month. I also do private dinner parties, appetizer parties, open houses and corporate events."

Lori Cole: "My services are all over the board: I do dinner parties, teach cooking classes and have regular clients that I cook for."

How do you charge for your services, and what's the cost?

Carmody: "It's a whole package that includes all the groceries – it's about the same as going out to eat. Five packages of four meals each starts at about $350."

Spangler: "It's a set price depending on the number of meals and the number of servings. The standard package of five entrees, four servings of each, starts at $425."

Cole: "A baseline is probably about $350 to $400 for 10 days' worth of dinners."

Do you have a set menu?

Carmody: "It depends on the consultation with the client. We pick a menu that fits their specifications."

Spangler: "No. We'll sit down and go through a comprehensive food questionnaire that will give me guidelines and I plan a menu for them."

Cole: "Not really. We have a database of tried and true recipes but I tailor the menu to the client. Every client will want something different."

What dish is your specialty?

Carmody: "The most requested is pesto-encrusted chicken breast with a tomato-artichoke cream sauce."

Spangler: "I do a five-pepper veal manicotti that I get requests for twice a week."

Cole: "My chicken with homemade pesto mixed with cream, parmesan and tossed with linguine."

Where do you prepare the meals?

Carmody: "Preferably in the client's home."

Spangler: "In the client's home."

Cole: "In the client's home."

What's one spice or ingredient you couldn't live without?

Carmody: "My special blend of Italian herbs and spices."

Spangler: "My favorite is garlic; I love it and it helps just about everything."

Cole: "Flat-leaf fresh parsley is phenomenal in fresh food."