A private chef cooks a restaurant-level dinner in the kitchen of the house you are staying in, serves it at your table and leaves the kitchen clean. On the west side of Hawaiʻi Island that usually means a vacation rental or villa in Kona, Keauhou, Waikoloa, Mauna Lani, Mauna Kea, Hualālai, Kukiʻo, Puakō or Waimea. Here is how it works, what it costs, and what to ask.
What a private chef dinner includes
The menu is planned with you ahead of the dinner: the occasion, who is at the table, allergies and what the island farms and boats have in season. On the day, the chef shops, arrives with everything needed, cooks in your kitchen, serves each course and cleans up.
You choose the style. Plated dinners bring courses to the table one at a time; family-style puts shared platters in the middle. Plated dinners suit 2 to 16 guests, and family-style works for larger groups.
What it costs
Most private chefs on the island price per guest. At Roots Alchemy, plated dinners start from $115 a guest for a plant-based menu, $135 for the Elevated menu and $160 for Lux, for larger tables, plus 4.5% Hawaiʻi general excise tax. Shopping, ingredients, cooking and service are included, and no gratuity is expected. Dinners for 2 to 4 guests, weddings and events are priced on request.
When you compare quotes, check what is included: groceries, service, cleanup, tax and gratuity are the usual differences between two numbers that look alike.
Diets and allergies
A good private chef plans around every guest rather than cooking a separate plate for the one who is different. Menus here run on three tracks, animal-forward, seafood-forward and plant-forward, and every menu can be made fully plant-based and gluten-free. Tell the chef about allergies once, when the menu is planned.
What to ask before you book
Is the kitchen in the rental equipped for the menu (oven, burners, enough plates for the courses)? Where will the table be set, inside or on the lanai? What time should dinner start for sunset? And who handles drinks: most chefs cook and serve, and you supply the wine.
Questions
Where on the island do you cook?
Your rental, villa or home anywhere on Hawaiʻi Island: Kailua-Kona, Keauhou, Hōlualoa, Waikoloa, Mauna Lani, Mauna Kea, Hualālai, Kukiʻo, Puakō, Waimea, Hilo and Puna, and farther on request.
How many guests can a private chef cook for?
Plated dinners for 2 to 16 guests, family-style for more; farm dinners and weddings for 8 to 20.
See the menus and send your date
Private dinners in KonaMore: A Japanese private dinner · Holiday dinners · All guides