What It Means to Have a Private Chef During Your Portugal Holiday

There is a moment during every private chef dinner that captures why this experience exists. The table is set. The wine is poured. The first course arrives, plated with the care of a restaurant but served in the intimacy of your own terrace. Everyone is together. Nobody is driving. Nobody is checking a menu. Nobody is rushing.

This is what happens when the restaurant comes to you.

How it works

The process is straightforward. You tell our concierge when you want dinner (or lunch, or breakfast, or all three). We connect you with one of our chefs, who contacts you to discuss preferences, allergies, dietary needs, and how adventurous you want the menu to be.

On the day, the chef shops at the local market that morning. Fish from the harbour. Vegetables from the farms. Cheese from the producer two valleys over. Whatever is in season, whatever is at its best.

The chef arrives at your property two to three hours before service. They bring everything: ingredients, equipment they need beyond what your kitchen offers, even table styling if you want it. They cook, plate, serve, and clean up. You do nothing except sit down and eat.

After the last course, the chef cleans the kitchen and leaves. You are left with a terrace, a glass of wine, and the memory of a meal that no restaurant can replicate, because no restaurant can combine this food with this setting and this company.

What a dinner looks like

A typical private chef dinner for our guests:

For a couple: Four courses. Perhaps a tartare of tuna with Algarve citrus to start, followed by a fresh pasta course, Atlantic seabass as the main, and a dessert using seasonal fruit. The chef selects wines to pair. Duration: roughly two hours.

For a family: The chef adjusts. Children get their courses first (simple, familiar, loved). Adults follow with a menu that might be more adventurous. Everyone eats at the same table, on the same evening, with no negotiations about "is this restaurant child friendly?"

For a group of friends: This is where the private chef really shines. A long table for twelve or sixteen, a menu designed for sharing, platters of grilled seafood, whole roasted meats, bowls of salads, and bottles of local wine. The kind of dinner that starts at 8pm and finishes when someone finally suggests they should probably go to bed. These are the meals that become the story of the trip.

For a celebration: Birthdays, anniversaries, proposals. The chef works with our concierge to add details: a cake, a champagne toast, a particular dish that has meaning. The setting is your private property, which means no other guests, no time limits, and no awkward singing from a restaurant team.

What it costs

Private chef experiences in Portugal range depending on menu complexity, group size, and ingredients.

A four-course dinner for two with wine pairing typically runs 50 to 80 euros per person. A six-course dinner for eight with premium ingredients (lobster, aged steak, special wines) runs 80 to 120 euros per person. A barbecue lunch or casual cooking session for a family is often less.

Compare this with a Michelin-starred restaurant dinner in Portugal (easily 100 to 200 euros per person before wine) and the private chef is not only competitive on price but offers a fundamentally different experience: your setting, your music, your pace, and no drive home.

The seasonal calendar

Part of the magic is eating what the land and sea produce right now.

Spring (April to June): Young vegetables, first strawberries, sardines begin arriving in force, fresh herbs, spring lamb. Light, vibrant menus.

Summer (July to August): Peak sardine season. Grilled fish at its finest. Tomatoes, peppers, stone fruits. Meals move outdoors. Barbecue and seafood platters for warm evenings.

Autumn (September to November): Harvest season. Mushrooms, chestnuts, new wine, game birds, pumpkin. Rich, warming dishes that celebrate the transition.

Winter (December to March): Octopus, monkfish, root vegetables, citrus, salt cod. The hearty dishes of the Minho come into their own: sarrabulho, cozido, slow cooked pork.

Our chefs are trained to work with the seasons, not against them. If you ask for strawberry dessert in November, they will suggest something better.

Beyond dinner

The private chef experience extends beyond a single meal.

Cooking classes. Learn to make cataplana, bacalhau a Bras, or pasteis de nata in your own kitchen with a chef who has made them a thousand times. Good for families, couples, and groups who want to take a skill home.

Market tours. Join the chef at the morning market. Learn to select fish, choose produce, and navigate the stalls. Return to your property and cook together.

Breakfast service. For guests who never want to see a hotel buffet again: fresh bread, local eggs, seasonal fruit, cheese, ham, freshly squeezed juice, and proper coffee, prepared and served at whatever time you wake up.

Full-stay chef. For longer stays or large groups, a dedicated chef for the entire trip. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with menus that evolve through your stay. This is the closest thing to having a restaurant follow you on holiday.

How to book

One message to our concierge. Tell us: when, how many people, any dietary needs, and how formal or casual you want the evening to be. We handle the rest.

Explore our gastronomy experiences or browse our homes and let us know which property inspires you. The chef will adapt the menu to match the setting, the season, and the story you want to tell.