Let these 10 private chefs in Singapore craft curated menus that’ll elevate your dining experience and dazzle your guests.
The aroma of quality cuts sizzling on the grill, exquisite plating, and a feast fit for royalty – all coming straight from your kitchen. No need to lift a finger, when you’ve got a private chef cooking up a storm. In a country that proclaims itself as food-obsessed, Singapore has no shortage of private chefs ready to display their knife skills and unmatched palettes.
Some specialise in fine French cuisine, while others take liberty with unconventional ingredients. Whoever you go with, enjoy top-notch cooking when you hire one of these top private chefs for your next dinner party.
All you need to know about private chefs in Singapore
Besides the obvious – cooking for you and your guests – a private chef also sources quality ingredients, designs a suitable menu, and preps ahead of time for the meal. Some will also offer to bring their own tableware and equipment.
Bear in mind that the private chef would have to make it worth their while, so there’s typically a minimum headcount and spend. As a baseline, you can expect prices to be upwards of $80 per person.
1. Chef Chia of Snowcology
As one of Miele’s in-house chefs, Chef Chia of Snowcology presents an array of clever dishes. Not one to flinch from unusual pairings, he experiments with top-tier ingredients in his menu such as a French toast entree with flavours of smoked marrow and lobster, or a broccoli chawanmushi with briny hints of oyster and ikura.
The menu is seasonal, placing priority on the freshness of the produce. Each dish is thoughtfully planned and intricately plated – as one reviewer lauds, think of it as an adventure for your tastebuds. Make sure to opt for a wine pairing experience by a qualified sommelier too. While Chef Chia often hosts at his place, he can also carry out a complete service at your home for an additional $200.
Price: From $168 per person
Snowcology Private Dining website
2. Chef Naughty Rabbit
In the fine dining arena, Chef Naughty Rabbit sets himself apart by offering Muslim-friendly food. He cooks simply but with bold flavours, letting the light shine on the purity of the ingredients used. Take his signature picanha steak dish, a rump cut that’s known for its big, beefy flavour. Here, it’s the star of the show with accompaniments of pomme puree, sweet onions, and a lightly spiced harissa sauce.
Chef Naughty Rabbit is also a strong believer in the French culinary practice of mise en place, to have everything neatly prepped and organised before the cooking begins. Prepare yourselves for a culinary spectacle too, since he often wields a blowtorch whether for a charred squid or the crackling of a creme brulee.
Price: From $130 per person for a three-course meal
3. Chef Danny Tan of Craft and Food
Chef Danny Tan from Craft and Food is a master of all – beyond traditional Chinese and European fare, he also ventures into the cuisines of far-flung countries like Morocco and the Himalayas. In taking inspiration from all that he tries and an emphasis on seasonality, the menu is never fixed but rather, ever-changing.
Chef Danny also heeds the importance of alcohol pairing, noting that roughly 90 percent of the time, the menu is planned around the wine or spirits. Make sure to give your best bottle of Bordeaux ample time to breathe before this dining experience. Tableware and all equipment will be provided, so no need to make sure your kitchen’s fully decked out.
Price: From $150 per person (min. spend of $1,000)
4. Chef Inderpal Singh
As the MasterChef Singapore winner for 2023, you can be sure that Chef Inderpal Singh knows his way around a kitchen – might as well make it your kitchen. He’s made a name for himself on our local food scene in recent months, having joined hands with Bollywood Farms and vegan ice cream brand Kind Kones.
While he relies on a base menu that changes every three months, he can easily tailor it to your party’s dietary restrictions and preferences. No matter what it is, make sure to try his signature dish: the lobster biryani with eggplant pachadi.
Price: From $145 (min. of four diners with six courses)
Chef Inderpal Singh website
5. KeeHive Private Dining
This omakase-style dining concept by KeeHive Private Dining features the absolute freshest and seasonal produce – especially seeing that Chef Bernard only sources the ingredients one or two days before the meal. His menu is reflective of classic French and Italian techniques, featuring the likes of a chilled Vichyssoise soup, scallop and fondant potatoes, and foie gras on buffalo mozzarella.
One of his specialities? Pork belly with a crisp crackling. It’s simple, but he believes that good food should be straightforward while simultaneously delivering a complexity of flavours. You can choose to dine in his alfresco-style home garden, or book him for a sit-down meal in the comfort of your own dining room.
Price: $150 per person for lunch; $180 per person for dinner (min. of four diners)
KeeHive Private Dining website
6. Cloud Nine Private Dining
When you’ve got a chef who’s honed their skills in Michelin-starred restaurants like Burnt Ends and San Francisco’s Benu, your kitchen transforms into a stage – one to showcase his culinary expertise. But Chef David of Cloud Nine has no airs and proudly brings his local palette to the table.
You can expect an array of locally inspired dishes, all elegantly plated and with the use of premium ingredients: crab meat carrot cake, chilli crab mantou, and claypot rice with foie gras. Other signature items include a seafood paella cooked within a claypot, pan seared Hokkaido scallops, and artisanal butters. No need to take out your fine china either, since he conveniently provides tableware for the full experience. You can discuss your plating preferences with him beforehand.
Price: From $188 per person for a six-course meal (min. of six diners)
Cloud Nine Private Dining website
7. Chef Pierce Yee
Chef Pierce Yee first cut his teeth at now-defunct Ristorante Da Valentino, and even became the co-owner of a casual Italian restaurant, Sale Marino. But when the pandemic struck, he turned towards cured meats, aged steaks, and ready-to-eat pasta. He’s grown leaps and bounds since then and has made his name as a personal chef.
Some delectable dishes from past menus include uni carbonara, Spanish pork chop, along with dry-aged and dry-brined steaks. But of course, Chef Pierce takes into consideration what your preferences are – it’s worth uncorking a few vintages for this special dining experience. If you’re looking for a barbecue chef, he is equally talented with a grill and readily takes on the heat.
Price: From $68 per person for a three-course menu (min. spend of $400)
8. Argentinian BBQ Gourmet
A barbecue in our balmy weather always sounds like a brilliant idea – till you spend the entire night fanning the flames at the grill, that is. Argentinian BBQ Gourmet does exactly what their name suggests, and takes over the grill with skilled finesse. Tuck into flavourful proteins like balsamic-marinated skirt steak, chimichurri chicken, and some quality Argentinian ribeye.
They do other solid dishes, from fresh scallops drizzled with a pea puree to grilled Provolone cheese with tomato confit. Rather than a white tablecloth dinner, these barbecuing folks promise a good time with their live grilling and catering services.
Price: From $88 (min. of 20 diners)
Argentinian BBQ Gourmet website
9. Chef Matteo Pertoldi of Atipico
The fresh bakes and decadent cakes of online pastry shop Atipico are well revered for those in the know – but this cult-favourite business first started as a humble supper club. For private chef service, Chef Matteo Pertoldi prides himself on using only high quality seasonal ingredients that are free from any harmful additives. They also offer standing dinner and buffet services, but you’ll have to make a booking for at least 20 diners.
True to its name, Atipico is atypical in that they offer a fully customised menu. Each comes designed according to your own taste buds. Plus, they also promise to leave your kitchen exactly as how it was found so that’s a bonus point in our books.
Price: From $800 (min. of eight diners)
10. Private chef booking platforms
Most private chefs show up as a one-man team. As capable as they are though, there are full-fledged platforms out there that connect you to an array of private chefs and catering teams to provide that exclusive dining experience at home. Consider using Take A Chef, where you can choose from over 140 capable private chefs – they’ll then send over customised menu proposals for your consideration.
There’s also Private Chef Singapore, a bespoke caterer that promises a luxe meal in the comfort of your own home. Here, you can choose from menus like a 10-course fine dining experience (from $3,600) or a modern Thai menu (from $3,000). Otherwise, Personal Chef Singapore is also a solid option. Helmed by Chef John Sawarto, they deliver top-notch service with a team of professionally trained butlers.
Enjoy a private dining experience at home
Nothing excites like a fine dining experience, and all the better when you can have it in your own home. These private chefs not only promise a lavish meal, but also are unparalleled when it comes to impeccable service and personalised menus.
For other equally grand experiences, consider setting off on one of these luxury cruises from Singapore or enjoy escaping to one of these private islands in Southeast Asia.
Cover image: Pexels
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