Excerpts: The National Post
2002
By: Unknown

Who says things aren't tough in Toronto? Personal chefs are so busy in the metropolis that it's hard to find one who can take new clients.  After a long day at the office, the last thing on most people's minds is whipping up a gourmet meal from scratch.

Hiring a personal chef might sound more like an extravagant daydream than a viable solution, but a growing army of home cooks and their clients are working to dispel that bias.  "People would be surprised at how much they spend on groceries and how much of that food actually gets wasted," says personal chef Michelle, vigorously slicing a row of leeks into thin ribbons at the home of client Margot Jones.

At a recent cooking session, both touted personal chefs as an affordable and increasingly popular alternative to restaurants or prepared gourmet food for time-strapped families wanting to eat healthy fare.  "I think it all budgets out," says Ms. Jones, who runs a management-training company with her husband and is the mother of two young girls.  "I rarely eat out, and if you look at the prices at Whole Foods [a U.S.-based natural foods supermarket new to Toronto], it's pretty reasonable"

For example, Chef Michelle... charges a fee of $300, which involves coming up with a menu with the family, shopping for groceries and then spending a day in the client's house preparing the meals.  The $300, which includes the price of the groceries, buys 10 dinners for two. So from Monday to Friday, a couple can enjoy a feast of rolled turkey breast with apricot and cranberry sauce or cabbage rolls stuffed with fennel and chicken smoked in peach wood. Dessert is optional.  Compare that to a prepared dinner entree at Whole Foods, such as grilled salmon with caesar salad. That runs $12 plus tax and requires a trip to the store.

"In the United States, it's become huge -- it's as popular as having a cleaning lady," said Mia Andrews... There's a lot of demand for the service. We need more chefs. Although we have members across the country, there are certain areas, such as Toronto, where it's hard to find a chef that can take a client."

Those who seek out the services of a personal chef tend to be middle- to upper-middle-class urban families and working couples, Ms. Andrews said, with family incomes in the neighbourhood of $80,000 to $120,000.  Personal chefs keep their overhead costs low by cooking in clients' homes. They arrive on an appointed day, groceries and cookware in tow, and leave behind freezer-safe containers filled with savoury dishes, complete with heating instructions.  Chef Michelle, who has numerous clients with allergies and dietary restrictions, includes detailed nutritional breakdowns of her cuisine.

Toronto-based personal chef Terry Henderson, who has worked for celebrity clients such as Denzel Washington , agrees personal chefs are becoming more popular for busy professionals.  Last year he formed his own organization, the Canadian Personal Chef Alliance, which has already grown to 90 members.  "People are supper-stressed," said Mr. Henderson, who charges $225 plus grocery costs ($110 to $160) for 10 meals, basically two weeks of weeknight suppers.  "They find themselves eating out in restaurants all the time. In Canada, there is not that great a difference between prepared food and restaurant food in terms of price. It's not like Europe, where food can get quite expensive and people only eat out for special occasions." 

Other than price, the key divide between prepared and restaurant fare and meals cooked by personal chefs, Ms. Andrews and Mr. Henderson concur, is fat: most restaurants eschew leafy greens and fibre, loading up their staple dishes with oil, cream and butter. Chef Michelle notes even the higher-quality prepared frozen foods are full of starch and fat.  Personal chefs tend to cook lighter fare, and many of the clients who seek out their services are looking for an alternative to frozen dinners or greasy take-out food.

Their services are distinct from those offered by private chefs, who work full-time with one family or individual and usually live in their homes.  In Canada, private chefs are the purview of wealthy families, typically earning between $50,000 to $100,000 a year -- a fair sum given that living expenses are covered, but a far cry from what private or personal chefs can make in Los Angeles. The latter are de rigeur for celebrities such as Jim Carrey and Gwyneth Paltrow, and charge fees that are closer to $200,000 a year. 

Mr. Henderson says he has charged celebrities considerably less during his time on movie sets, about $700 per week for all meals and grocery costs.  "I've been told that I could get away with charging them a lot more," he says, chuckling. "But celebrity work is just gravy. Most of my clients are families."

Information about personal chefs and how to find one in your neighbourhood can be found at [http://www.topchefs4hire.com]

Update: 2005.  Mr Henderson no longer provides his service in Canada, and is no longer involved with The Chef Alliance.

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