As a personal chef and someone who loves food I enjoy sharing what I have learned with my clients.  It is one of my passions to share what I know, and one way of doing this for me is by passing along tips and suggestions that people can use in their own kitchens and in their lives.  If your business does not include cooking classes you are still making an impact in the lives of everyone you cook for.  When people come looking to you for personal chef services they are attracted to what you offer.  If one of your intentions is to make a difference, you will do that, by just being you and staying true to your unique style of cooking.

Recently I had a couple from Arizona who came to Maui for vacation.  They had been on a very strict diet for 30-days and had just lost a lot of weight.  They wanted some tips that they could use to create healthy and delicious meals at home.  At their request we created a meal together that used no butter, white sugar, flour or dairy: Ginger Teriyaki Prawns; Carrot Ginger Coconut Soup; Roasted Tomato, Onion, Zucchini, Herb and Red Wine Ragout with Fresh Fish (opah); Cilantro Lime Mahi Mahi Tacos with Fresh Fruit Salsa; and Berry Crisp with Frozen Mango Coconut Cream.

I think they were surprised at how flavorful and satisfying real food that was low in carbs could be when you combine a variety of fresh herbs and flavorful ingredients.  What I love most about this story is that they emailed me when they returned to their home after trying the recipes that I shared with them.  At my suggestion they also discovered their own local farmer’s market to source some fresh ingredients to use in their kitchen.  This is the email they sent to me after trying the recipes at home, “All I can say is WOW and THANK YOU!”  Remember, you do make a difference in the lives of the people you touch through your food.

It doesn’t matter if you have had your own business one month or ten years.  Your clients want you to bring your wisdom and knowledge into their lives in some way. If you have a passion for food then you have something unique to share.  Even if you are cooking for someone for only one meal you are creating a memorable experience that may last a lifetime.  People celebrate many occasions through food and for most people food plays a very important part of each day and as a personal chef you directly impact people through the food you make.

This week I went to a client’s home to empower her to cook healthy meals.  She has been my weekly client for a number of months and she now wants to be able to cook healthy dishes for herself and her husband. I helped her think outside the box and encouraged her to not be afraid to experiment in the kitchen.  We made five versatile sauces that could be interchanged with a variety of her favorite vegetables, different types of pasta and a selection of fish, chicken and even beef.  The sauces were: Orange-Ginger Teriyaki Sauce; Cilantro-Basil Onion Citrus Sauce; Basil Pesto with Macadamia Nuts; Sesame Dressing; and Red Wine Mixed-Herb Sauce with Mushrooms.  I gave her the recipes and information that she can now use in her everyday life.  When you help people do something in a new way you are giving them a gift for a lifetime.  I think of it as unleashing people’s creativity and providing them a starting point where they can then continue to invent and create dishes that work for their lifestyle and individual tastes.

Being a personal chef YOUR way is the only way.  Remember, when someone chooses you for your services there is something about you that attracted them to your style of cooking.  It is very important to stay true to your culinary point of view because what you do is unique to you and you alone.  If you are being excellent in what YOU do then you are doing all that you can do.

Ann-Marie Burtell is Culinary Artist/Owner of Maui Fresh Chef www.MauiFreshChef.com. Offering: Personal chef services which include private dinners and events; daily and weekly meal services; shopping and preparation; personalized classes with farmer’s market tours in Hawaii.

See Ann-Marie Burtell's Chef profile on Sneak Peek Eats.

Last week we had the pleasure of filming Diana Dorenzo from Jazz in the Kitchen, based on Maui. Diana made homemade butternut squash ravioli with a browned butter sage sauce in the video and I'll be honest - There's nothing quite like freshly made pasta. Delicious!  She also makes her own bread which was divine!

Her motto is "I believe food should excite, nurture and satisfy the soul."  Many of her recipes are family recipes and she uses local Maui products as often as she can.

Her video can be seen here and her profile can be viewed here.  Welcome to Sneak Peek Eats Diana!

Personal Chefs are as diverse as culinary styles, and just like seasoning there are chefs for every type of palette.  Not all chefs are alike, and rightfully so!  It would be a dull world if all chefs had the same menu, cooked alike, seasoned alike, or thought alike.  Their differences are translated into the unique flavors on your plate and the unexpected and delicious combinations we ourselves would never have thought to merge. Flavor profiles, culinary techniques, plate design, and complex textures all stem from one central source; the personality of the chef. Each chef approaches these raw ingredients with slightly different backgrounds, philosophies and passions. Never before has there been a culinary meeting ground where we have the opportunity to discover the perfect personal chef, until now.  Sneak Peek Eats is the perfect virtual kitchen to meet several chefs with matching culinary tastes as yourself.

Chef Aline has cooked around the world, from France to Tokyo but is now based in Honolulu as a personal chef.  Her personal chef company is called A Table Hawaii which is the French way of saying "Dinner is ready, come to the table and let's enjoy a meal together."

Along with intimate dinner parties and weekly meals, Aline also provides in-home cooking classes.

Take a look at Aline's profile here and browse through the photographs of her delicious food!

Featured Chef Profile | Chef Videos | Restaurant Videos

The terms personal chef and private chef are often interchanged, but there are differences between the two.  Chef Ann-Marie explains the differences in our Chefs Corner Blog. Read more

When I began my professional career as a “personal chef” I did not know the variety of opportunities that would present themselves to me on my journey.  I learned very quickly that it is extremely important to stay flexible as I grow with the personal chef industry because it is still defining itself.

The definition of “personal” vs. “private” chef needs to be explained as these words are often interchanged.  There are some differences that the industry uses to differentiate the two.

PERSONAL CHEF = Offering various types of chef services for multiple clients, in their homes. These services include but are not limited to shopping and cooking weekly meals, meal delivery, small dinner parties, special occasion events, cooking classes, etc...Personal chefs run their own businesses, have a business license, and take payment directly from their clients.

PRIVATE CHEF = Chefs who primarily work for one client who dictate their location, duties and hours.  They are paid by this one client similar to a salaried employee.

What I have noticed in the past few years is that people who have personal chef needs will help you define your business.  I have been asked to do everything from surprise anniversary dinners for a group of 9 at a luxurious town home in Wailea, to intimate backyard oceanfront gourmet dinners in Kihei, or cooking for extended families for a week during their Maui vacation for all of their meals. There are also clients who want their fresh meals cooked every week, or it could be for a Thanksgiving luncheon or a casual wedding buffet for 10.  Most clients who come to me are looking for fresh food with a Hawaiian twist cooked in the comfort of their own space.  Some are looking for special meals that are elegantly plated and coursed, or families wanting fresh food served family or buffet style that will also please their children and others wanting to enjoy a gourmet meal on their lanai.

The biggest surprise has been the number of requests from tourists who want private cooking classes to learn how to make locally-inspired dishes as well as have a unique Maui experience.  Requests range from small groups of tourists wanting a fun food experience, to mothers and daughters wanting to have a culinary journey together, or newlyweds wanting to leave with new recipes to try at home together, or health-conscious individuals wanting healthy food tips.

I have noticed that the reason people select me over another chef is that clients who have specific needs come looking for what I offer.  My culinary point of view is “Always Fresh, Always Delicious, and always with Aloha.  I provide unique preparations of fresh food with Mediterranean/Hawaiian flavors that are not overly complicated.  I am blessed to live in a place such as Maui that allows me access to the freshest herbs, and fruits and vegetables year round. I focus on including fresh local fish as much as possible in my cuisine.  I have done 6-course gourmet meals with only fish, vegetables and fruit (no dairy, butter, white sugar, or gluten).  My style of cooking can easily accommodate many dietary requests.

Another key to success in this industry is to have “go to dishes” and “go to menus.”  These are dishes and menus that generally please most palates, including children. I can have my unique take on the dish, but the flavors cannot be overly complicated or requiring too sophisticated a palate.  My intention is to have people find my food delicious, healthy, with a gourmet touch, so that’s what I emphasize.  I try to make “comfort” food that is healthy.  Oh yes, even Coconut Prawns with Sweet Chili Sauce is “healthy!”

What I love most about this profession is that I am able to interact with my clients and that I help create their event a success.  I have had people spend time with me in the kitchen while I put together their meal so that they could watch me and pick up a few cooking techniques.  I became “the show.”  I have had visiting families return to Maui because they enjoyed the “personal chef” experience so much.  I bring the restaurant to you and my motto is, “have jacket, will travel.”  I choose not to work in a restaurant because I love the front of the house as much as the back of the house.  I enjoy personalizing and adding my special touches to an event, and that’s what makes what I do interesting and exciting.  No event is ever alike and I accommodate requests as much as possible and create each experience to the specific needs of my guests.

Ann-Marie Burtell is Culinary Artist/Owner of Maui Fresh Chef www.MauiFreshChef.com. Offering: Personal chef services which include private dinners and events; daily and weekly meal services; shopping and preparation; personalized classes with farmer’s market tours in Hawaii.

See Ann-Marie Burtell's Chef profile on Sneak Peek Eats.

When it comes to forever you want to start it off right. The story of your engagement will be retold and retold as long as you both shall live, give her something to talk about. Use a private chef to create the perfect mood to pop the question. Have her favorite meal ready in the perfect location. Don't limit your location options - with a private chef you can have your perfect meal anywhere; the beach, the top of a mountain, a scenic overlook.

We welcome our first Oahu chef, Chef Ryan Covert, to Sneak Peek Eats!

Chef Ryan is based in Honolulu and owns Covert Affairs - a personal chef company for locals, visitors and celebrities. Ryan has an extensive culinary background and a broad culinary style which focuses on Asian-Pacific, Mediterranean, and Caribbean cuisine.

Take a look at Ryan's profile here and his personal video here which contains photos of his amazing food! His website, covertaffairs.com also contains a restaurant blog, Honolulu Culinary Insider.

Welcome to the world of personal chefs and the ever-evolving world of food.  The Personal Chef Industry is fairly new and still evolving, just as the way we eat in 2010 is so different than 20 years ago.  When you begin your profession as a personal chef it will be up to you to determine the direction of your business, along with listening to the needs of your customers in your particular region of the country or world.  It is also important to highlight your cuisine with local specialties or unique flavors that are specific to your part of the world.

Working as a personal chef versus a chef in an established location you can be more creative and flexible, but at the same time you have to create a system and format that works for you and your style of working and cooking.  I tell my clients it’s all about personalized service and creating a menu and experience specifically for their needs.  As a personal chef it is important for you to stay true to your culinary point of view and expertise.  One advantage of being a personal chef is that there is creative license that you can bring to the table to each of your clients.  What’s exciting is that when you work with clients who want you to be creative you have exceptional opportunities to stretch yourself and go places that may not have been possible in the past.

When I am first contacted by someone new I always ask them their likes and dislikes, whether it is for a week’s full of meals or just one dinner.  It doesn’t matter what’s on my menus, I try to accommodate diverse palates whenever possible.  If someone says they love Italian food or do not like mushrooms then a dish or meal can be specifically created with their tastes in mind.  It’s important to listen to the client, because as a personal chef you are being hired to create an individualized experience.  The client is choosing to hire you as a personal chef because there is something unique about you and your services that caught their attention, and it’s important to remember that.  The client doesn’t get to try the food until after you are hired and so communication and how you sell yourself is a key element to running a successful personal chef business.

It is also important for you to be willing to experiment with new dishes that someone may want, because it could mean getting the job or not.  I am always willing to do a little research and experimentation if someone wants something that I may not have on my menus because it’s important that at the end of the day they are happy with the meal.  It’s because of clients that I have developed signature dishes and recipes, including papaya seed dressing, macadamia-coconut crusted mahi mahi, coconut prawns, and mango cheesecake with gingersnap crust.  I created versions of these recipes that fit my culinary point of view and now these menu selections are requested time and time again.

If you are a customer seeking a personal chef it’s important in the beginning to get an overall feel that you and the chef are a good match.  I have been told many times that I was chosen because the client enjoyed my style of communication and approach.  Customer service is extremely important.  If it’s a special event you are hosting then you and the chef need to be able to communicate clearly from the very beginning, from the first point of contact.  It’s key that you ask the right questions of the chef and that the chef is able to ask you enough questions to know what you want.

What I know for sure is that life is about the journey and not the destination.  Through my exploration of food I have discovered a world that continually expands and grows.  Just as we need food to fuel our bodies I have found that creating amazing food experiences brings joy to people.  I love when I can wow the taste buds and give people a new perspective on the food that they are enjoying.  Experiencing a unique culinary journey can awaken your palate and enliven the spirit.  Bon Appetit!

Ann-Marie Burtell is Culinary Artist/Owner of Maui Fresh Chef. Offering: Personal chef services which include private dinners and events; daily and weekly meal services; shopping and preparation; personalized classes with farmer’s market tours in Hawaii.