No more Christmas dining out – latest trend is to hire in a chef
THE latest trend in Christmas dinners is paying a chef to come round and do all the preparation, cooking...and the washing up!
More Brits are hiring a chef for Christmas dinner
But at prices from £89 to £140 per head, it may not be the answer to every festive host wanting to get out of spending the whole day in the kitchen.
Yet record numbers of cash-rich, time poor, Britons are expected to go for the idea of having a qualified chef do all the hard work while the hosts can concentrate of opening the presents, watching the TV and playing charades.
A record number of Brits are opting for outside catering on Christmas Day, largely due to the stresses of preparing, cooking, serving and clearing up
La Belle Assiette, which offers the service, supplies a local chef and a range of Christmas Day menus to choose from, starting at £89 a head and rising to £140 a head.
It can either be a traditional turkey and trimmings dinner to a Mediterranean themed one. The chef will talk to the host before the big day to find out more about the size of the kitchen and facilities available.
And on the day itself he or she will take care of preparing the meal, cooking it, serving it and then clearing up and even washing up afterwards.
Hiring chefs would allow people to concentrate on opening the presents and watching TV
With 70 per cent of Britons claiming to spend five or more hours on preparing the annual feast, the clear advantage is in taking the stress out of the occasion.
La Belle Assiette said: "A record number of Brits are opting for outside catering on Christmas Day, largely due to the stresses of preparing, cooking, serving and clearing up.
The chef could cook you a traditional turkey dinner or a mediterranean one
"On the day the chef will arrive at your home with all the ingredients, they'll cook in your kitchen, serve everyone at the table and make sure that all the washing up is done before leaving!
The chef would also clean up for you
"Great food, time with your friends and family and no cleaning up, hosting has never been so enjoyable."
Outside of Christmas the service costs from £39 per person.