Meal Planning & Logistics
Once we've nailed down the menu, I have to plan logistics. If I'm smart, I've been thinking about this all along. The issue here is stovetop and oven capacity as well as available counter space. Even the nicest, most well equipped home kitchen still only has one stove, right? Sure, maybe it has six burners. But for any given dish, when you take into account the various sauces and other components that go into it, you might have three or more pans on the stove at any given time. And that's just for one dish. If you're preparing four or five hot dishes, those six burners fill up fast.Similarly, if you've only got one oven, it's critical to ensure that it doesn't need to be at 500° for the rack of lamb at the same time it needs to be at 400° for the baked halibut.
Then there's the plating issue. Let's say I'm doing five courses for 12 guests. That's 60 plates! Do you have 60 plates? Not a lot of people do - at least not matching ones. That means the plates from an early course often need to be washed and dried in time to be re-used for a later course. That makes for one busy kitchen. Yes, I bring assistants with me, but more warm bodies in the kitchen isn't always better. In most home kitchens, three people is about the optimum number. Anyone additional is probably doing more harm than good.
Assuming I've secured an adequate supply of plates, then what? Look around your kitchen. Do you have room for 12 plates? Seriously, a dinner plate might be 10 or 12 inches across - maybe more. So plating a single course for 12 people could require up to 12 feet of available counter space. At this very moment, though, I've got several other dishes cooking, I've got used plates pouring back into the kitchen, and pretty much every pot or pan in the kitchen is currently being used for something. I'm lucky to find two feet of counter space, let alone 12.
Also remember that I prepare and cook every single dish from scratch right in the client's kitchen. Nothing is cooked in advance and then simply reheated when I get there. That may be how catering operations work, but I'm a personal chef, not a caterer. I show up with nothing but groceries, and everything I do is on full display for the client - and their guests - to see.
Which brings up another important aspect of the job: I'm not just making dinner - I'm also part of the entertainment. Part of my job is presenting ea ch course to the diners, explaining what it is, answering questions and so on. It's the "personal" part of being a personal chef.
Then there's the moment, and it always comes, when a guest who's had a glass or two of wine and is feeling a bit expansive, decides to come in for a chat - just as the rack of lamb catches on fire or some other disaster begins to unfold. When that happens, my job is to smile, have a chat, and hope one of my assistants knows how to put out a kitchen fire.
Rewards of Being a Personal Chef
It's likely beginning to sound like I've got nothing good to say about my job, but nothing could be further from the truth. Unlike cooking in a restaurant, I'm able to see the guests enjoy my food, and hear their "Mmmm"s with my own ears. I've been toasted, I've received rounds of applause. And believe me, it never gets old hearing from guests that I've just served them the best meal they've ever had.Apart from the personal accolades, though, one of the most gratifying parts of the job is knowing that I've been a part of what is often the most special celebration in my clients' lives. It's not easy work - but then again, the most rewarding things in life seldom are.
