Prepare Your Villa for a Private Chef: A Handover Checklist

The handover between a villa host and a visiting chef should happen before the shopping list is finalized. A photograph of a beautiful dining room does not show whether the oven works, where deliveries enter or who can unlock the kitchen. A short property brief answers those questions in one place.

Use this checklist alongside the agreed menu and quote. Its purpose is to describe the house and assign responsibilities; it does not replace a private dining proposal or promise that equipment, rentals and service staff are included.

Send photographs that answer practical questions

Photograph the stove, oven controls, refrigerator interior, sink and clear work surfaces. Include a wider image showing the route from the kitchen to the table. Mention stairs, a separate outdoor kitchen or doors that need to remain closed. The chef can then ask focused questions instead of discovering a long carrying route during service.

Count usable plates, glasses and cutlery for the actual guest count. For example, a house advertised for twelve overnight guests may not have enough matching plates for several courses. Check serving bowls and platters separately. Write down what the property supplies and what must be rented or brought by the team.

Assign access to one person

Give the team a named property contact, an arrival window and clear parking instructions. Ask the property manager whether vendors need registration and whether a delivery can arrive before the host. Confirm which entrance is appropriate and who will answer if the gate does not open.

The same contact should communicate any house rules affecting music, photography, waste or departure time. Do not send access codes in a public event brief. Share them directly with the people who need them, and keep guest information out of documents circulated to unrelated suppliers.

Agree where setup and service happen

Mark the table location, a place for plating and a route for clearing used dishes. Keep the return route away from arriving guests where possible. If the terrace is the first choice, identify an indoor table that fits the same group; a covered corner with fewer seats is not an equivalent backup.

Confirm who brings drinking water, ice and beverages, and where those supplies will sit. A chef preparing a course should not also have to search the property for missing glasses. Decide whether a host, property staff member or member of the dining team handles those tasks.

Close with a written kitchen handover

List the expected end state: washed cookware, cleared tables, rubbish location, returned rentals and any food being left with agreed storage instructions. Specify whether personal dishes already in the sink are outside the service scope. That small distinction prevents disagreement when the team begins cleaning.

Before the event, send The Hidden Table the completed property brief with the date, guest count and dietary notes. Ask the chef and property contact to flag anything unresolved. A single confirmed list is more useful than several conflicting messages sent while guests are arriving.