And everyone knows the worst part about cooking is the cleanup! With all of the services listed below, Raconteur chefs will leave the kitchen clean and return any rented equipment, dishware, or linens.
Private Parties
In order to provide food of exceptional quality, as well as maintain the highest standards of service and presentation, Raconteur focuses on small, intimate parties of 16 or fewer. We also provide services for larger parties requiring more casual presentation, such as cocktail party appetizers or luncheon buffets.
We specialize in creating menus based on a theme that reflects the clients tastes and interests, and creating a special environment to highlight it. Recent examples are:
- An outdoor Mediterranean-style buffet for 24
- Elegant, formal French dinner with white linen, fine china and silver for 4
- An exotic, eastern-themed party complete with incense, floor pillows, flower petals, and finger-bowls for 14
For those visiting the Sonoma Valley who may require personalized services in their vacation rental home, Raconteur has packaged groups of services designed to ensure your time in the Wine Country is relaxing and delicious. Services may include:
- In-home breakfast preparation - wake up to the smell of bacon cooking and biscuits in the oven, or maybe you'd prefer freshly squeezed juices, fruit smoothies and whole-grain pancakes. However you prefer to start your day, we'll be ready - complete with the morning paper.
- Picnic baskets - perfect for a day of wine tasting. Our chefs will package everything you need for a day in the wine country: local cheeses and breads, sandwiches, salads, and other goodies in containers designed to keep the cold foods cold and the hot foods hot. We'll also make sure you have the plates, wineglasses, openers, flatware and refuse containers that often aren't available for a spur-of-the-moment picnic.
- Wine country dinners - return to your vacation rental and you'll find dinner ready and waiting. From a casual buffet of the freshest local ingredients to a more dramatic table set with linens and silver, our chefs will ensure that your day will end on a high note to compare with the sights and tastes of the day.
Personal Chef Services
Raconteur provides a wide variety of personal chef services for those who find themselves short on time, experience or inspiration. Whether you need assistance with planning, shopping, and/or in the kitchen, or you would prefer to stand back and let us do all the work, we provide a variety of services that can be mixed and matched to suit your needs.
- Customized menu planning - are you a vegetarian? Your kids won't eat mushrooms? Or maybe you've just run out of ideas. Raconteur chefs will sit down with you to put together a master list of likes and dislikes and create menus based on your preferences. Branch out and try new, exotic foods or enjoy the familiar comfort foods you know, we'll help you put together menus made up of fresh, balanced, delicious meals.
- Grocery shopping - whether you prefer whole, organic ingredients, want to prepare healthy yet fun food for the kids, or need help locating hard-to-find gourmet ingredients, our chefs will do the legwork tracking down everything needed to prepare delicious meals in your home.
- In-home meal preparation - our chefs can provide services at every level - from merely helping with planning and preparation to preparing multiple meals for a week to full-service elegant dinner parties. We'll work with you to determine your needs and what support you require.
In-home lessons
In-home cooking classes are a fun way for a small group to spend an afternoon or evening, or an effective way for an individual who wants to get more serious about menu planning, ingredient selection and cooking to learn from one of our experienced chefs.
Much like our personal chef services, our chefs will help you create a menu, acquire the ingredients, and then demonstrate proper cooking technique. With the support of the chefs, the students will prepare a variety of dishes and then and sit down to enjoy a well-prepared and well-deserved meal.
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