London Wine Tasting Experiences. At Home Wine Tasting

So you want to host a chef-catered dinner party in London. I did, for my 50th birthday, and it came off absolutely brilliantly thanks to Chef Charlotte. Here's some advice: 1. Obviously, rent the AirBNB/event space with the largest dining area. This will likely not be big enough, however, and you probably won't have enough place settings, silverware, wineglasses, etc. We only realized this in a call with Chef Charlotte, who recommended an event hire company from whom we rented an extra table, linens, wine glasses, etc. 2. Tell the AirBNB owner what you're doing before you reserve: I didn't really, and for the week leading up to the event was pretty stressed out that the owner would object or worse, send over the police! 3. Use HOMETAINMENT. Antoine Melon, the founder, is dedicated to making your event a success and will likely reach out to you personally--exactly the touch that will make the difference. Thanks Antoine! 4. You will probably end up working with the first chef who responds to your inquiry--in our case, fortuitously, Chef Charlotte. And you'll probably be fine with any of the HOMETAINMENT Chefs they're all professionals, after all. However, I would recommend that you at least wait to hear from Chef Charlotte, who I would wholeheartedly recommend. 5. Keep things (relatively) simple. While I'm sure she can cook anything, Chef Charlotte recommends a menu that she has likely cooked a hundred times and can probably do in her sleep. She adapted it to accommodate our dietary needs (some vegans, garlic intolerance) and added a personal favorite of mine, a cold spring veggie soup which was amazing. 6. An assistant chef/server is important, and I'd make sure that your chef will have one (Charlotte will). 7. And ultimately, relax and have a great time! Chef Charlotte is a total professional, great to work with, and most of all, cooked us an unforgettable meal: Passed canapés: Roasted aubergine with tomato and black olive tapenade Salmon gravlax, toasted rye, mustard and dill sauce Dorset crab tartlets First course: Spring vegetable soup, gremolata Second course: Ravioli of new season English green and white asparagus Main course: Herb crusted rack of Cotswold lamb, spring vegetables, potato gratin, lamb jus, served with risotto of spring vegetables, basil pesto, pine nut crumb Dessert: Apple tart tatin, home made vanilla ice cream Bon appetit! John Affleck Quincy, MA

Absolutely mind-blowing. The vegan food was sophisticated, full of flavour and original. Everyone was so impress with the quality and the taste of what the chef prepared for us. Chef Mickael was extremely professional, came with his fresh products and tools, and created the most perfect dinner. Service was impeccable, the chef was very discreet, he was friendly and keen to explain when we asked him what he was preparing. Few guests signed-up straight away with Hometainment to repeat the beautiful experience. I highly recommend the vegan dinner with chef Mickael. Thank you guys!

Chef Lorenzo was fantastic! His dinner menu was both elaborate and tasty. Next level dining with a cool touch of a young chef.

Had a really lovely time, very chilled and enjoyable. The instructions were clear and given step by step and we were able to adapt the pattern to our own preferences

Fergus created a wonderful experience for us. A weekend away with the family to celebrate my Father's 70th birthday, we booked this as a treat. New to hiring a chef we didn't know what to expect. Fergus made the process, simple and fun. To choosing the menu, to the little surprises he planned for us, made it seamless. On the day Fergus was prepared, worked efficiently in the background in the shared kitchen space and his presences was a lovely addition do our dinner. His food was amazing from the lobster tail, to the Jalapeno palette cleanser, to the duck breast mains everything was amazing and had as anticipating each course. Would def do again! Cannot recommend enough and a genuinely nice guy.

Chef Edward was the perfect addition to my private party at home. His culinary skills are unparalleled, and he created a menu that exceeded all expectations. The attention to detail and quality of ingredients were outstanding. I would highly recommend Chef Edward for any event or occasion. Thank you for making our evening so special!

Charlotte (and her assistant) were an excellent team to cater our dinner at home for 6 guests. Really responsive in the pre event communications and super flexible and helpful while designing the menu. Very calm and in control on the night and nothing was too much trouble. Food was exceptional, including a wonderful mango and passion fruit soufflé which was brilliantly done. Couldn’t recommend Charlotte more.

Phenomenal every course! Charles created a stunning fish & seafood focused menu for my summer birthday party, and I was absolutely blown away. A particular highlight was the XL Scallop with caviar starter, but every course had rave reviews from my guests. Presentation was absolutely perfect too.

We engaged Chef Stefano to cook a multi-course Christmas Banquet for our family of eight in London in December 2024. For context: we are a multi-generational family, all gourmands, (at one point I was an anonymous restaurant reviewer) with varying preferences in terms of cuisine but thankfully the common ground of the flavours of the Mediterranean, which was the brief we provided Chef Stefano. To say Chef Stefano surpassed our expectations is an understatement. Ten months later and I am still dreaming of the symphony of starters that was a beetroot gravlax with salmon, marinated sea bass that showcased the fish with a vibrant citrus and dill dressing and finally beef Carpaccio that was simplicity rendered decadent. Yes, it was thinly sliced beef and there were parmesan shavings, however, the truffle and mustard condiment was nothing short of ambrosial. The write-an-essay-about-it chicken liver pate fashioned into Christmas tree forms (the children in our number loved that touch) was smooth, rich, suitably boozy with the marsala wine and intense in flavour. And because portions were generous, it was a welcome addition to the breakfast table the following morning! For our main course we opted for Porchetta and baked salmon topped with pomegranates. The medley of sides ranged from perfectly executed classics such as roasted parsnips and carrots (which Chef Stefano made festive with the addition of a maple syrup dressing), lentils baked in a pumpkin gourd and a raw broccoli salad with pine nuts and baby spinach leaves that was a refreshing counterpoint to our other choices. Our puddings of Monte Bianco and Tiramisu were the kind of conclusion of dreams::meringue pavlova, chestnut cream, chantilly and chocolate on one hand, and layers of coffee soaked biscuits with the optimal ratio of mascarpone and chocolate on the other. Chef Stefano also prepared a lasagne for the children as an additional dish - a thoughtful inclusion in case they were picky eaters - but devoured by us all with alacrity. The effusiveness of this review is also due to Chef Stefano's professionalism. He arrived on time, plated everything beautifully and created a culinary experience that my family and I will cherish for many years to come.

She catered a small informal dinner party for me . It was a pleasure dealing with her - planning the menus and all of organisation was easy and she immediately understood what I wanted for the event . Her cooking, food presentation and serving clearing were all impeccable I look forward to using her services again