Picture the scene

It’s a special occasion. The Cannes Film Festival perhaps or the Monaco Grand Prix? Throwing a birthday party or celebrating an anniversary? Whatever the event, it’s definitely a time to relax and experience some truly memorable food amongst good company. That’s where Amandine comes in. Our chefs will take care of all the shopping, chopping, preparing, perfecting and serving. You simply enjoy the company of your guests while we take care of the rest.

Many of our chefs are used to catering for large numbers and have experience of working for corporate as well as private functions. So if you’re looking for someone reliable, professional and personable to cater your event then look no further.

We can also help to find waiting staff or bar staff for smaller functions. We should mention however that we are not event caterers or party organisers. If this is what you’re looking for then we would be happy to recommend people that we know are very good. We can also put you in touch with companies that hire out equipment, crockery, cutlery or glassware.

Request a Chef

If you would like to know more about any of our services or have a specific request then please complete the form below and we will be in touch with you shortly. Alternatively you can call us on +33 (0)9 67 31 96 62, +44 (0)207 193 7306 or +1 954 607 2153

Test a chef

What to expect

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Right first time

Great chefs select the finest ingredients, and fine tune their dishes drawing on years of experience and detailed knowledge. At Amandine, we work the same way. We don’t throw endless CVs at you, hoping something sticks. Instead, you get a hand-picked shortlist of chefs, filtered initially using 40 different levels of compatibility including ability, style, character, location and availability. The end result: right chef first time!

Read more about our carefully tailored and rigorous process:

Chef Selection

All of our chefs have to complete a 7 stage application process online before they are even considered for an interview. Many other agencies ask only for a CV and written references but at Amandine our in depth registration process requires our chefs to answer over 70 questions relating to their job preferences, style of cooking, work experience, location, availability and detailed employer references that we check verbally. Once they have completed this process our team then review the quality of their application and only the most promising of chefs get to the next stage of being interviewed.

Interview & Skills Test

Every candidate recommended by Amandine will have been interviewed - and we don't just mean a quick telephone chat. We conduct at least an hour-long interview either face to face or via video skype. All of our chefs will tell you that the Amandine interview isn't quite like other recruitment or crew consultants. We talk extensively about food with our chefs and take time to really get to know their individual stories and what makes them tick. When required we conduct skills tests in the Amandine kitchen and all of our chefs are offered the chance to cook a trial dinner for our judging panel of industry experts in order to become an accredited Amandine chef.

Getting to know you

We like to try and meet our customers in person. We think it’s a better (and much nicer) way to do business. And after all, it’s just as important to get to know you as well as we know our chefs if we’re to get the mix right. If we aren't able to meet with you to discuss your request, we always follow up by phone to find out as much about your specific requirements as possible. The more details we can obtain from you about the kind of food you or your guests like and the type of chef you are looking for the more likely we are to find you the right match.

Compatibility Matching

After confirming your request for a chef we put a shortlist of suitable candidates together. Our proprietary software allows us to search for the right chef using at least 40 different criteria to create an initial list of candidates that "on paper" fit with your requirements. From here we then fine-tune the selection based on our knowledge of the individual chef, discussing the role with them and further cross-referencing your criteria with our notes and other information such as previous employee references. Normally we recommend a short list of no more than 3 candidates who we think are suitable unless specifically asked for more. If there is just one chef who perfectly matches all your criteria then we will only recommend that one chef rather than ten others who aren't suitable.

Verifying Chefs' Details

In addition to thoroughly verifying all documents, written references and qualifications we speak to at least two verbal references for each candidate. These have to be people that the chef has worked for in the past two years or their most recent two jobs.

Personal Service

When we recommend a chef we provide a personalised profile that summarises the key relevant experience of the candidate and any personal details worth noting. The aim of this is to give you more of a personal picture of the chef and to share with you some of the details we have uncovered that you may not find out on a CV. We provide sample menus for all of our chefs when we send you their profiles along with references and food photos on request.

Private Client
We had the most superb holiday, five days none of us will ever forget… and one of the reasons was the brilliance of chef François.
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Dear Kate

Many thanks. We had the most superb holiday, five days none of us will ever forget. Truly wonderful – and one of the reasons was the brilliance of Francois.

I have sent him an email “reference” for his website. It says exactly what we all thought about him. What he cooked for us was absolutely superb in every way – and he couldn’t have been nicer.

He looked after us for the five days of our stay in St Paul de Vence. There were six of us and we are all agreed that his selections of what to give us for breakfast, lunch and dinner were superb and his cooking outstanding. Before we met him, he gave us a list of the menus he liked to cook, so we knew what to expect. Every meal we had was based on fresh local produce bought that day from the market. That includes the croissants and the bread we had at breakfast, the wonderful salads we had at lunch, and the fish and meat we ate. Every dish was prepared beautifully, and tasted wonderful.

Chef Francois consulted us each day about what we might like to eat. (He made a point of asking if any of us had things we couldn’t eat so, if necessary, he could make an alternative choice). We asked for a light lunch, two courses usually, a salad followed by fish, and then a three course meal in the evening. On our last night, his piece de resistance was an incredible chocolate soufflé that was light as a feather and absolutely delicious.

Chef Francois himself could not have been nicer or more easy to deal with. He is a most charming man. He speaks perfect English. We can only say that he gave us a gastronomic experience that we will never forget. It made our holiday truly memorable.

I cannot recommend him too highly.

You have a truly gifted chef on your books – and one of the nicest people one could meet, a winning combination.

Francis Bennett,
Private Client
Private Client (Crans Montana)
“I’m happy we found your services everything was very smooth and professional. Chef Eric made our holiday”
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Our week with Eric was fantastic, he’s really made our holiday a holiday.

His meals were wonderful, delicious and innovative and he really understood what we needed from our initial discussion. He was patient, flexible and calm in a chalet full of chaos with 7 small children and 7 adults.

Eric is also just a really nice guy who was a pleasure to have around and it really felt like he took great joy in our happiness in the tasty dishes he created. We wish we could have Eric as a personal chef 365 days a year!

I’m happy we found your services Kate, everything was very smooth and professional.

Many thanks

Zsofia,
Private Client (Crans Montana)
Private client
“Everything was absolutely excellent. You should be complimented for recommending us to obtain the services of Michal.”
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Everything was absolutely excellent. Michal is a great chef. The food was great and surpassed our expectations. Furthermore Michal´s personality and his ability to adjust to our needs/requests were absolutely great.We will for sure ask for Michal´s services when we visit France again. And also you should be complimented for recommending us to obtain the services of Michal.

Christian Jul Madsen,
Private client
Chef
“Amandine has helped me to get my dream job…”
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Amandine Cuisine, a fresh approach to hiring It has been a pleasure working with Kate over the last few weeks. Amandine private chef agency came to my attention through a recommendation, so I signed up as a candidate through their attractive and easy to use website when I first arrived in France in April. 2011. I originally intended to come to Antibes to find a position on a private yacht, so I also signed up to around another 15 or so yacht agencies. After having very brief interviews with the yacht agencies I was able to meet with Kate. Kate took her time to interview me and we were able to have an in depth chat about myself and what makes me tick as a chef. Kate is a keen “foodie” herself so it was so easy to talk to her about cooking, ingredients and restaurants; she even gave me a couple of tips for eating out in the area. It was really refreshing to see that Kate was interested in me for everything rather than simply just looking at the fact that I’m young and have yet to work on a yacht. Kate has helped me to my dream job working as a private chef for an American family between their houses in Maine, Houston and Aspen. I’m so grateful for everything she has done for me and if she continues to interview and really get to know candidates before placing them then I know she will have some very happy clients and chefs.

Ryan Turner,
Chef
Chef
“Amandine is what I believe both chefs and clients need from an agent.”
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What is Amandine to me? Amandine is what I believe both chefs and clients need from an agent. Kate got to know me before she considered me for any positions. She finds out all she can about the clients with whom she suggests a match for placement and then runs the position past me before putting me forward on as informed a basis as she possibly can with the facts available to her. I went freelance in summer 2011 and Kate has found me short term placements over the greater part of the summer and into the winter. Amandine is my first port of call when I am looking for my next assignment.

Fiona Thomas,
Chef
Private Chalet Client
“Robby is amazing, without a doubt one of the most organised and professional chefs I have had the pleasure to work with.”
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Robby is amazing, without a doubt one of the most organised and professional chefs I have had the pleasure to work with. The staff and the guests are loving the food. What more can I say apart from thank you.

Justin Stanley,
Private Chalet Client
Hidden Dragon
“It is rare to find agents like you who are so dedicated to finding the perfect match.”
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It is rare to find agents like you who are so dedicated to finding the perfect match. I am extremely grateful for all your time and efforts and hope we work together in the future.

I wish you all the best for a lovely Christmas.

Ashlee Benis,
Hidden Dragon
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