As the food world is evolving, there needs to be a discussion now about the pros and cons of private dining vs. restaurants. There will always be a time and place for restaurants, but now with the affordability and accessibility of private chefs, the in home dining experience has never been easier. Both sectors play an integral role in tourism and are becoming more creative at doing so. So let’s begin.

Restaurants:

Everyone loves restaurants. Everyone will always love restaurants. So what do we all love so much about them? The variety of different cuisines and cultures. Menu items most can’t reproduce at home.

Restaurants are also a “mini-vacation”. Patrons use them as getaways from kids, chores, and the redundancy of their everyday routine. This is where ambiance also plays a part. A new exotic environment or an escape from everyday life.

Price points also play a role a restaurants popularity. Family restaurants tend to be a cheaper alternative to white table cloth. And taking your family out to dinner is a stress free night with no cleanup afterwards.

So what are customers biggest complaints about restaurant dining? Believe it or not, there’s quite a few that are now common place and accepted. Customers have become numb to some of the cons with restaurants because there hasn’t been another real option.

We can start with accessibility. It’d be nice if your favorite restaurant was right next door. But that’s never the case. It’s always a drive downtown. So dealing with traffic, parking, taxi services, meters, tickets, etc. is sometimes cumbersome and can turn patrons away. The time it takes from leaving the house until your entree hits the table could be anywhere from 1-3 hours depending on the day.

Tipping also has to be factored in to any night out. Most customers, even if they experience bad service will feel obligated to tip 18-20%. And for a family of five, this could be a tank of gas, diapers, or groceries.

The “worst seat in the house” often occurs. Especially for larger parties, as sometimes the restaurant needs to get creative with the seating arrangements. No one likes the seat next to the bathroom. This can really spoil a meal.

Private Dining:

So in a “battle” between private dining vs. restaurants, you’ll need to focus on what really matters to your party. Again, there are pros and cons to each. And customers are starting to think outside the restaurant box. The private dining vs. restaurants battle can also be a private dining vs. traditional private dining.

Just as restaurants offer variety, our Private chefs offer a wide range of menus from Latin to Southern. Customers are also able to customize menus and order a la carte. Because of this, we are able to work with most budgets. And an option we recently introduced is to choose a second entree. We understand how hard it’s been to choose one entree for 20 people. These are wildly different than in the case of traditional private dining and more in line with restaurants.

Enjoying restaurant quality food in the comfort of your own home. Another huge benefit to our private chef services. The accessibility i’ve been referring to. No need to leave the house and deal with commuting downtown. We also add another layer of entertainment value. Our chefs are engaging and love to teach and talk about food. This alone makes our service very popular as another option to a group activity.

You’ll always have the “best seat in the house” when it’s your house. Stay as long as you’d like! No need to be rushed out the door or order quickly. And with our online pre-payment system, there’s no awkward payments or fumbling with money at the end. We also have very reasonable cancellation policy to boot.

So we hope that we’ve helped you along in your decision between private dining vs. restaurants. If you have more questions or concerns please don’t hesitate to contact us!