🍅Make People Happy ~~ Cook Them Good Food!🍅
🍅Make People Happy ~~ Cook Them Good Food!🍅
Welcome to Comfort Cuisine by Lolly's Personal Chef Services, where every meal is a celebration of flavorful, satisfying food. Lolly is an experienced, personal chef who specializes in creating custom meals tailored to your unique tastes.
A personal chef is a small business owner who serves numerous clients–generally one per day–providing multiple meals that are personalized for the client’s particular tastes. The meals are packaged and stored according to the client’s needs to be enjoyed later at their leisure.
How is a Personal Chef different from a Private Chef?
A private chef works exclusively as an employee for an individual or family, and is much more expensive than a personal chef.
SAVES YOU TIME
Do you have a busy schedule but would prefer to eat at home most weeknights?
It's estimated that for a typical family of four, someone in the household spends
10+ hours per week doing these chores:
And just think of it! When Lolly prepares fresh, handcrafted meals for you in your own kitchen, you'll be able to sit down to a delicious dinner around your table in half an hour or less.
MORE NUTRITIOUS MEALS
We're all guilty of it! We go out to eat because it's easy. BUT... how healthy are the choices on the menu? So often, we're tempted by the high calorie, high sodium, high fat options on the restaurant's menu.
If you're trying to eat healthier, but aren't quite sure how to incorporate more wholesome and less processed foods into your routine. Let Lolly cook up some nutritious meals that you can easily put together at home.
SAVES YOU MONEY
Consider how many nights a week you go to a sit-down restaurant or run through a drive-thru to grab something quick to eat. Now, think about how expensive it is to go out to eat with your family so many nights a week.
A Comfort Cuisine personal chef service and groceries could cost you as little as $15.00 per serving*. And, depending on your choice of fresh-serve and/or frozen entrees, you should be able to enjoy these nourishing, satisfying meals for a week or more.
*Cost per serving varies depending on # of servings & menu choices.
A personal chef service is perfect for:
Comfort Cuisine by Lolly proudly serves the RiverBend area in Illinois. This includes Alton, Bethalto, Brighton, Collinsville, East Alton, Edwardsville, Elsah, Glen Carbon, Godfrey, Grafton, Jerseyville, Maryville, Roxana, & Wood River.
Fun Fact! The RiverBend area is a small region in western central and southern Illinois that comprises parts of Madison, Macoupin, and Jersey Counties. The name comes from a section of the Mississippi River that flows roughly west to east instead of the usual north to south, causing a bend in the river.
Simple! I'll conduct a free consultation with you. Preferably, this meeting happens in your kitchen; but we can also conduct it via online meeting or telephone. Think of this as a 'Getting to Know You' meeting to ensure that we're perfectly paired, like a nice steak & red wine.
During this meeting, we'll work together to complete a Food Profile Worksheet. This is where I find out your food likes & dislikes, any allergies or food intolerances you may have, as well as scope out the equipment in your kitchen. Additionally, you'll be able to ask any questions you may have about how a personal chef service works.
All of your meals are prepared in your own kitchen according to required food safety guidelines.
On your cook day, Lolly shows up with groceries, utensils, and equipment required to prepare your selections. At the end of the day, your fridge/freezer will be stocked with labeled containers. And your kitchen will be left sparkling clean with nothing left behind except the aroma of good home cooking.
Simply put, health department codes prohibit it. In order to sell and deliver prepared food, a licensed, health department-approved commercial kitchen is required. Cooking everything at your home as opposed to preparing it offsite and delivering it provides you with the freshest, most economical food possible.
Lolly does offer packaged heat and eat meals at the Comfort Cuisine Take-Away Eatery. Find out more about it here
Because your meals are crafted lovingly from scratch, Lolly will be at your home anywhere between four and eight hours depending on the complexity of the menu you choose.
No. All you really need is a clean, functional kitchen with an oven, stove, microwave, refrigerator/freezer, working sink with hot water, and counter space.
No. You do not have to be home on your cook date, but either way is fine. When we book your cooking date, we'll discuss home entry, pet arrangements and any other specifics I may need to know.
For your first cook date, I'll require a 50% deposit when you approve the menu. Subsequent services may be paid on the scheduled cook day.
I accept check, cash, Venmo, and credit card.
I do! On the morning of your scheduled cook day, I'll pick up all the groceries needed for your meals. This way all of the ingredients are as fresh as possible.
I'm happy to pick up any additional groceries for you while I'm at the store. Just send me a list prior to your scheduled cook day.
The cost for groceries is in addition to the personal chef service fee.
This is very hard to estimate! The grocery bill will vary depending on your menu choices and the current price of food in general. For example, a meal with lobster tails will be WAY more expensive than say, one with ground beef.
However, to give you some idea for budgeting purposes, I recently prepared my base In-Home Meal Prep service of 3 entrees for a few clients, and the cost of groceries averaged to $110 per service.
Your kitchen counters need to be clean and clear of anything other than typical small appliances. Your stove, oven, microwave, and refrigerator should be clean and in working order. Make sure there is space available in the fridge and/or freezer to store your tasty meals.
During your free initial consultation, we'll discuss how you'd like the meals portioned. For example, family-style, individual servings, or X number of portions per container. This will help me decide the size and number of containers that best meet your needs.
Additionally, you may select from a number of packaging options such as disposable, microwavable plastic, freezer-to-oven aluminum, or more permanent Pyrex containers.
Pyrex containers are popular because in addition to being a one-time investment, they easily go from freezer to fridge, then to either the microwave or oven. I can steer you in the right direction if you're interested in purchasing Pyrex containers for your personal chef prepared meals.
Plastic containers are a less expensive alternative, however you'll need to transfer the meal to an oven-safe dish for heating in a conventional oven. Simply wash the containers in your dishwasher after you've enjoyed the meal, then have them ready for each cook date in a predetermined location.
I'm happy to buy either of these packaging options for you prior to your first cook day and add the cost to the initial invoice. In either case, the containers belong to you if you discontinue the service.
Lastly, aluminum packaging is another inexpensive, recyclable, fridge/freezer to oven option to consider. Aluminum packaging would typically be purchased by me at the grocery on the morning of your cook date and the cost would just be included on your grocery bill.
I'd love to! I'm always willing to try out new dishes. If you provide me your favorite recipe, I'll be happy to cook it!
At the very minimum, you'll need to reheat the food using the instructions provided at the end of your cook day. Heating instructions will be approximated because all ovens and microwaves vary in performance.
Occasionally, you may need to throw together a salad using prepped greens and toppings I've left for you, or perhaps cook a pot of rice or noodles. It really just depends on your meal choices and how much you're prepared to do yourself.
It's totally up to you. This will vary depending on the size of your family, how many evenings you want to eat at home, if you prefer fresh-serve (refrigerated) or if you're willing to freeze some of the dishes.
During our initial consultation, we can discuss these options to determine what best suits your lifestyle. You can choose from weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or as-needed meal prep service.
Service dates are scheduled on a first-come, first-serve basis. As-needed services and gift certificate purchases are scheduled around regular, recurring clients.
I understand that 'life' sometimes happens and you need to cancel or reschedule a cook date.
If you need to cancel, please let me know via voicemail, email or text no later than 2 business days prior to your scheduled cook date. At that time, we'll make arrangements to reschedule.
Nope. I don't require a contract or commitment to a specific term of service.
Absolutely.
Word of mouth and customer loyalty are the life blood of my business, and I definitely want to express my appreciation in the form of discounts.
Discounts:
Sure! Just contact me directly and we can discuss gift certificate options. Gift certificates are perfect for:
I'd love to help! I can assist you with menu planning, do the grocery shopping for you, and help you get the food prepped so that you can enjoy a stress-free gathering.
You'll find details and pricing for this service on the Services page.