Frequently Asked Questions

We arrange private chefs who cook in your chalet during your stay in the French Alps. Your chef plans the menu with you, buys the ingredients, cooks, serves and does the washing up, so you don't have to think about meals at all.

We started as a group of private chefs who wanted to offer a better chalet-dining service and support one another, and we've been doing it for nearly a decade. Our chefs are carefully selected, experienced in luxury alpine chalets, and matched to your group's requirements rather than simply being whoever is free next. They'll often share their favourite local spots too, from hot chocolate stops to hidden lunch places.

• Three Valleys: Méribel (Centre, Village, Mottaret, Les Allues), La Tania, Courchevel (1850, Moriond, Village, Le Praz), Val Thorens, Saint-Martin-de-Belleville and Les Menuires
• Espace Killy: Val d'Isère and Tignes
• Paradiski: La Plagne (including Les Coches) and Les Arcs

If your resort isn't listed, just ask, because we can often help in neighbouring resorts.

Yes. Get in touch with your dates and we'll check availability.

No. We only offer in-chalet cooking, where the chef cooks fresh in your accommodation.

Always in your chalet, using its kitchen. Everyone in the group needs to be staying (or eating) in the same chalet, and it needs enough table space, crockery and cutlery for your group.

No. Mountain Chefs is a booking service. We find, vet and match an independent chef (and host, if needed) to your group, and your service agreement is with the chef. We stay your point of contact throughout, from quote to after your trip.

• Dinner only: an evening meal on the nights you choose.
• Full service: breakfast, afternoon tea and dinner. This is our most popular option, especially with families, and it's much better value per meal than dinner only.
• One-off dinners: a single evening, such as a birthday, celebration or group dinner.
• Extras: lunches (a picnic hamper for the slopes, or a late lunch buffet in the chalet), dining in the snow, and additional staff such as hosts, butlers, drivers or entertainment. Just ask.

• Daily breakfast: fresh bread, pastries, fruit, cereals and juices, with a cooked option
• Homemade afternoon tea
• Children's meals, if you need them
• A dinner each evening, cooked to the menu you choose
• All the shopping, and a clean-down of the kitchen

Breakfast is still provided on days when the chef isn't cooking dinner, so you can eat out for a night or two and still have breakfast covered.

Menu planning, shopping, your dinner (cooked to your chosen menu) and a clean-down of the kitchen afterwards.

That's fine. Afternoon tea is included free of charge, so removing it doesn't change the price.

Full service has a minimum of 5 days. Dinner only can be booked from a single night, depending on availability. During peak weeks (Christmas and New Year) chefs generally take week-long bookings only, so single nights are hard to secure far in advance and are more likely to become available close to the date.

Often, yes. We have arranged chefs for the very next day. Message us and we'll check who's available.

Yes. Many clients book for the following season, and booking early gives you the best choice of chefs, particularly for peak weeks.

The price depends on your dates, resort, group size, service type and number of nights. You can get an instant estimate with our instant quote tool, or send us your details and we'll send you a full quote, usually the same day.

The quote covers the chef's time and service (plus a host, if your booking needs one). Food and drink are not included. Once we've accepted your booking, its price is fixed, even if our prices change later.

Your chef buys all the ingredients and you reimburse them at cost price, with no mark-up, along with your balance payment. Your chef will show you the receipts. We do it this way so the menu is entirely your choice.

That depends on what you choose to eat, but here are some typical examples from past bookings:

Longer bookings work out cheaper per day because the chef can buy in bulk and reuse ingredients. If you have a budget in mind, tell your chef when you plan the menu and they'll work to it.

No. The fee is based on the chef's time, not on who is eating, so the number of adults versus children doesn't change it. Children's meals may lower your ingredient costs, though.

For most groups it works out cheaper than eating out in resort, and you get restaurant-quality food in your own chalet, cooked to your menu.

Yes. We offer agents a 10% commission, which is added to the booking price. Please let us know when you enquire if you're booking on behalf of a client through an agency.

Groups of 10 or more usually need a host (front-of-house) to help the chef with service and clearing, so that meals run smoothly. If your group is right on the boundary, for example a family with several younger children, a host may be optional. We'll recommend what's best when we quote.

Yes. We've catered for groups of 30+ using two chefs and two hosts. For large groups, family-style dishes (sharing platters) are often the easiest and best-value option.

It can be. Family-style simply means dishes are served to share rather than individually plated.

You do. There are no set menus. You plan everything directly with your chef, from the cuisine and number of courses to portion sizes and timings, and you can change anything.

Yes. Tell us your group's tastes and we'll ask a chef to put together an example menu for inspiration. Sample dishes from past bookings include:

• Adults: porcini cappuccino; beef bourguignon with creamy herb polenta; duck tataki with potato pressé; Thai green curry; pear tarte tatin with peanut-butter caramel.
• Children: homemade nuggets and mash, fish and chips, homemade pizza, roast chicken and vegetables.
• Breakfasts: fresh bread and pastries every day, plus a hot dish such as pancakes, brioche French toast, crêpes or eggs.

No, unless you want it to be. Menus range from classic alpine comfort food and hearty roasts to oriental fusion, Ottolenghi-style vegetarian banquets and fine-dining tasting menus. Many groups prefer wholesome, family-style food, and that's just as welcome.

Yes. Our chefs source ingredients locally wherever possible.

Yes, we can accommodate any dietary requirement, including coeliac/gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian, vegan and food allergies (for example shellfish). Tell us about them on your booking form and discuss them with your chef. Many families like this because French restaurants often don't list allergens clearly.

Yes, and it's very common. For example, the chef can serve a simple kids' dinner at 6:30pm and the adults' dinner at 7:30pm.

Usually everyone has the same main, but the chef can prepare variations for different tastes or dietary needs. Discuss it with your chef when you plan the menu.

Yes, you set the timings. For example, an 8am breakfast is no problem. The service is flexible around your skiing and plans.

• Arrival and departure dates
• Resort and chalet
• Number of guests (adults and children)
• Service type (dinner only or full service)
• Any dietary requirements, and the style of food you like (optional at this stage)

1. Get a quote: use the instant quote tool, or message us on WhatsApp or by email.
2. Secure your chef: complete our online booking and preference form and pay the deposit by secure card payment (Stripe) at the bottom of the form.
3. Confirmation: we email you to confirm your booking.
4. Meet your chef: about one month before your stay, we introduce you to your chef by email.
5. Plan together: agree menus, timings and budget directly with your chef.
6. Enjoy: your chef shops, cooks, serves and cleans up.

Your group's details, likes and dislikes, dietary requirements, allergies and any service requirements. If you don't know everything yet, don't worry, because it can all be finalised with your chef closer to the time.

It depends on the booking, from about €150 for a one-night dinner up to around €1,000–€1,350 for large week-long bookings. The deposit is shown on your quote and is included in the total fee, not added on top.

• Deposit: paid to Mountain Chefs when you book, by card (through the secure Stripe link on the booking form) or by bank transfer. This secures your chef and covers our booking fee.
• Balance: paid directly to your chef, in cash or by bank transfer as you agree with them.
• Food and drink: reimbursed to your chef together with the balance, against receipts.

• Within 24 hours of booking: you can cancel for a full refund, paid within 14 days.
• Up to 30 days before your booking starts: 50% of the outstanding balance is due to the chef.
• Within 14 days of your booking starting: 100% of the outstanding balance is due to the chef.
• After the service has started: you can cancel by written notice, but services already paid for aren't refunded, and anything provided but not yet paid for will be invoiced.

Full details are in our Terms & Conditions.

If we can't provide your chef, for example because the staff you need become unavailable or something outside our control happens, we'll tell you straight away and refund everything you've paid us within 14 days.

If a government-enforced total lockdown in your departure country stops you travelling, you can cancel up to 5 days before your start date for a full refund. If an event outside our control (such as extreme weather or strikes) prevents the service for more than 2 weeks, we'll cancel and refund you within 14 days.

Please book through us. Under our Terms & Conditions, chefs first introduced through Mountain Chefs must be booked through us, and direct bookings may be charged at €1,000 per week.

Yes. We can re-quote for different dates, numbers of nights or group sizes at any time. Just let us know.

About one month before your booking starts. We'll introduce you by email (and let you know on WhatsApp too).

Tell us as soon as possible, by message, phone or email (it doesn't need to be in writing), and we'll put it right quickly. If the service hasn't been delivered with reasonable care or as described, we'll either redo it or reduce the price, up to the full price. Any refund is made within 14 days.

Contact our director, Tim Ball, by email at info@mountainchefs.net, by phone or by post, and we'll handle it under our complaints policy.

Message us on WhatsApp, email info@mountainchefs.net, or use the instant quote tool on our website. We usually reply the same day. You can also find us on Instagram and Facebook.

Yes, we're always keen to hear from talented chefs and hosts. Use the Work with us page on our website.