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

    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 45m Motor Yacht
    “The team at Amandine are extremely good, doing in-depth interviews with their candidates and providing us with honest, detailed references…”
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    I have been contacting Kate at Amandine for the last 2 years regarding finding good, professional chefs; she has never disappointed providing people who can cater to some strange dietary requirements and still keep a sense of calm and good humour.

    The team at Amandine are extremely good, doing in-depth interviews with their candidates and providing us with honest, detailed references and the chosen chefs have always been a success.

    Whenever in need of any chefs, Amandine is my first go-to crew agency and it has been a pleasure working with Kate and her competent team.

    Manager,
    Private 45m Motor Yacht
    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
    Sea-Alliance Group
    “With challenging tasks and very tight timeframes, you put all your effort into ensuring that the chefs you suggested were a good fit for our requirements.”
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    We were very happy with the highly professional service that we received from the Amandine team. With challenging tasks and very tight timeframes, you put all your effort into ensuring that the chefs you suggested were a good fit for our requirements. It’s been a pleasure to work with Amandine and we look forward to working with you again in future.

    Emma Eriksson,
    Sea-Alliance Group
    Private Client (Mandelieu)
    “I’m not sure I’ll be able to do a holiday without a chef now, such a game changer!!”
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    Lisa was fantastic! She put together a great menu, exactly what we wanted and we enjoyed everything she made. She was extremely organised, calm and tidy in the kitchen and worked discreetly and efficiently given the kitchen is small and everything was new. We were able to relax and enjoy our lunches and dinners knowing everything was in hand. She was a pleasure to have around and we all thoroughly appreciated her help.

    Thank you for all your help with the booking, your timely replies and sourcing appropriate chefs to meet our brief. We were thrilled with the result and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend your services to any friends and family. I’m not sure I’ll be able to do a holiday without a chef now, such a game changer!!

    Aileen Tappin,
    Private Client (Mandelieu)
    Owner 4* Boutique Hotel, Austria
    “I would work with Amandine again at any time in the future and can highly recommend their service.”
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    Amandine was recommended to me by a very successful entrepreneur facing similar difficulties like me in terms of hiring qualified staff for seasonal work in the luxury hospitality industry. I must say from the first contact with them I felt very well looked after. The candidates that were recommended to me were all very well trained and of high professional standard. I would work with Amandine again at any time in the future and can highly recommend their service.

    Stephan Traxl,
    Owner 4* Boutique Hotel, Austria
    Private Chef
    “Amandine…are a great team to work with, friendly, assertive and correct.”
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    Amandine helps me to do what I love: cook good food and make people happy.  They are a great team to work with, friendly, as­sertive and correct.They opened their doors for me and always give me amazing clients!

    Chef Klaus ,
    Private Chef
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