Brief - The Hustle

Personal chefs? There’s an app for that

Written by David Nichols | Apr 14, 2022 11:08:25 AM

Food delivery is a $150B global market, which means millions of us are trying as hard as we can to get a decent meal without ever leaving the house.

But one issue with OFH (ordering from home) is that the fries often show up soggy. Uber Eats takes ~30 minutes for delivery, and they’re considered the quickest delivery app, per CNET.

So, how do you get fresh hot food at home without cooking or leaving the house?

Bring the chef to you, of course

Hiring a personal chef isn’t as difficult as you might think (although it is still very costly).

Several platforms have emerged where customers can book private chefs to cook a meal in their own kitchens, including:

  • Yhangry, a British startup with an extensive menu selection
  • Take a Chef, which lets customers hop in and help with the cooking
  • Savour, whose roster of big-name chefs can turn your dinner table into a fine dining experience

Choose a date, time, type of meal, and a few other small details, and voila.

Like ghost kitchens…

… the pandemic accelerated the personal chef biz.

While ghost kitchens help restaurants sell takeout and delivery with less overhead than a traditional dining room, online platforms have helped chefs freelance outside the restaurant.

Demand for personal chefs also increased as customers sought ways to celebrate birthdays or anniversaries at home.

Will it last? Yhangry co-founder Siddhi Mittal told TechCrunch its chefs were still in demand as restrictions loosened because people like hanging out with friends in a relaxed setting.

Plus, no soggy fries.