Private chef · Statewide Rhode Island

A Rhode Island dinner, in your home.

From an East Side family home in Providence to a Narragansett beach house and a summer place on the Watch Hill bluffs. I plan the menu with you, cook it in your kitchen, and serve it at your pace.

Reserve Your Date

Statewide Rhode Island

A private chef in Rhode Island.

I’m Paige Gilbert, and Partum Events is my in-home private chef service. I am based in Newport and I cook across the whole state, all year. A milestone birthday in East Greenwich, a first night at a Narragansett rental, an anniversary in a Watch Hill summer house, Christmas Eve for the family in Barrington. The homes and the occasions change. The format stays the same.

I plan the menu with you, shop for it, cook every course in your kitchen, serve the table, and clean up before I leave. You stay at the table the whole night. A caterer cooks somewhere else and delivers. I cook in the room next to you, and each plate goes out when your table is ready for it.

The sourcing is local. On the morning of a dinner I am at Newport Seafood for the fish and shellfish, then Clements for produce and Aquidneck Meat for the lamb, beef and pork. Narragansett Creamery supplies the cheese (Atwells Gold and Divine Providence are the regulars), and Provençal Bakery the bread. In summer the tomatoes and stone fruit come from farms in Tiverton and Little Compton, and the berries and sweet corn from Schartner Farms in Exeter. On the south coast, the fish is often day-boat catch from Point Judith. The menu follows what is actually good the week of your dinner.

How a Rhode Island night runs

Three steps. One night.

Reach out

Send the date, the town, the headcount, and the kind of night you are planning. I usually reply within a day.

Menu design

I send a menu built for your evening, usually three to five courses. We adjust it together until it is right. Once the menu is agreed, a signed agreement and a deposit hold your date.

Event night

I arrive 2.5 hours before your guests, then cook, plate, serve each course, and clean the kitchen before I leave.

What to expect

What the night actually looks like.

The first conversation is about what you and your guests actually like to eat, who can’t eat what, and whether you want plated courses or a family-style table. I come back with a menu built around those answers and the season, and it usually takes a round or two to get it right.

On the day, I shop in the morning and arrive 2.5 hours before your guests. The first time I am in your kitchen we do a short walkthrough, and after that I stay out of your way. I watch the table from the kitchen. If a story is running long, the next course waits a few minutes. If the table is ready, plates start moving. Some hosts want me to introduce each dish, and others want me out of sight between courses. Either is fine.

Cleanup happens while you finish dessert. Counters are wiped down, pots are dried and put back, and any leftovers are labeled in your fridge.

A TYPICAL RHODE ISLAND DINNER · HOUR BY HOUR

3:30 PM I arrive, unload the coolers, and set up the kitchen by station.

5:30 PM Sauces are reducing, the oven is hot, and the house smells like dinner.

6:00 PM Your guests arrive. You are out of the kitchen with them.

6:30 PM Everyone is seated and the first course goes out.

7:15 PM Courses follow at the table’s pace, each one plated to order.

9:15 PM Dessert.

9:45 PM The kitchen is cleaned, the dishwasher is running, and the trash is out.

A sample night

A Rhode Island night.

SAMPLE RHODE ISLAND MENU

A Rhode Island Evening

FIVE COURSES · STATEWIDE

FIRST

Local Oysters

Yuzu Granita, Champagne Mignonette

SECOND

Heirloom Tomato & Burrata

Arugula, Basil Oil, Aged Balsamic

PASTA

Charred Corn Agnolotti

Sweet Corn Velouté, Cotija

MAIN

Filet Mignon

Red Wine Reduction, Cauliflower Potato Purée

DESSERT

Strawberry Champagne Cake

Macerated Strawberries, Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream

One summer menu, as an example. In fall and winter it shifts toward the season. Yours is built around your guests, your date, and what’s at the market.

Every Rhode Island booking

What comes with the evening.

Every Rhode Island booking includes the full menu design, all the grocery and seafood sourcing, the in-home preparation, plated or family-style service at the table, and a complete cleanup of the kitchen. Table linens, plates, silverware and water glasses are complimentary.

Wine and drinks are yours to provide and pour, and I focus on the food. Additional service staff for a larger group and any specialty rentals are set out in your quote up front. Full pricing lives in the private chef cost guide.

You sit down to a set table, and the kitchen is clean before I leave.

Newport, Providence and the East Bay

Where most of my Rhode Island dinners happen.

Newport is home base, and Aquidneck Island is where I cook most often: Bellevue Avenue cottages, harborside rentals, and year-round homes in Middletown, Portsmouth and Jamestown. The Private Chef Newport page covers Newport in detail.

Providence has its own page too. Private Chef Providence covers the East Side, College Hill, Federal Hill and Downcity. Across the bay in Bristol, Barrington and Warren, dinners tend to be at home in large dining rooms, and the holidays book early.

East Greenwich · Kent County

A private chef in East Greenwich and Kent County.

In East Greenwich, most of my dinners happen in the family home, around a dining table that has been there for years. Milestone birthdays, anniversaries, graduation weekends, Easter and Thanksgiving. The host gets to sit at their own table while the food comes out of the kitchen.

The kitchens here are usually generous, from the colonials and newer builds to the renovated homes off Main Street, with the counter space and burners for a real multi-course service. The waterfront homes off Greenwich Cove can run a little tighter, so more of the menu is finished ahead and fewer dishes need last-minute plating. The food on the table is the same either way.

I cook the same way in Warwick, Coventry, West Greenwich and North Kingstown. Kent County families tend to book the December holidays early.

Narragansett · South Kingstown · Charlestown

A private chef in Narragansett and South County.

The south coast hosts in two seasons. Summer is beach-house weekends in Bonnet Shores, Point Judith, Matunuck and along Ocean Road, often a group arriving on a Friday who would rather eat on the porch than look for a table. The rest of the year it is the people who live here, in Wakefield, Kingston and Charlestown, hosting birthdays, anniversaries and holiday dinners at home.

There are good restaurants down here, but fewer of them, and in July and August they are crowded. For a Saturday dinner with friends, hosting at the house is often the easier choice. Summer menus lean on Point Judith swordfish and striped bass, heirloom tomatoes and sweet corn. In the off-season it moves to winter squash, root vegetables, braises and day-boat cod.

Most beach-house kitchens are perfectly workable. If one is undersized for the group, I bring what I need. Narragansett is about forty-five minutes from Newport.

Westerly · Watch Hill · Misquamicut

A private chef in Westerly and Watch Hill.

Watch Hill is the most common Westerly booking: the summer houses off Bluff Avenue and Watch Hill Road, the harborside cottages, a dinner on the porch as the sun goes down over Block Island Sound. Avondale has older family homes with full kitchens and long tables that suit a rehearsal dinner. In Misquamicut and Weekapaug it is mostly beach-house rentals.

The kitchens vary more here than anywhere in the state. The Watch Hill estates have professional ranges, double ovens and big islands. A Misquamicut rental might have one oven, a small fridge and a single dishwasher. In the smaller kitchens I plan composed first courses that can be set ahead and finish more sauces in advance, and the dinner comes out the same.

Watch Hill is about an hour from Newport. I leave early on the day, stop at the suppliers on the way, and keep everything in coolers so the seafood arrives the way it came off the boat. Many Watch Hill families book more than one meal in a week, often an arrival dinner, a Sunday brunch and a last-night dinner, planned together so nothing repeats.

The Rhode Island year

What the statewide calendar looks like.

Memorial Day opens the South County beach houses and the Newport rentals. June and early July bring bachelorette weekends and family vacations. Late July through October is wedding season, with rehearsal and welcome dinners in Newport, Bristol, Tiverton and Watch Hill homes. September brings corporate dinners, and October brings Brown and RISD parents weekend. November is Thanksgiving in every county, and December is Christmas Eve, Christmas and New Year’s Eve, the busiest stretch of the year. The holiday menu page covers that season.

January through April is calmer, and some of my favorite dinners of the year happen then. Anniversaries, Valentine’s Day, milestone birthdays and Easter brunch. The menus lean toward braises, slow roasts and citrus desserts, and dates are easier to get.

Who books Rhode Island

What I cook across Rhode Island.

Anniversaries

An anniversary at home

A multi-course dinner built around what the two of you love, served at your own table.

Fortieth, fiftieth, sixtieth

Family-home birthday dinners, plated or family-style, from Providence to East Greenwich.

The Saturday night dinner

Newport and Narragansett rentals, with dinner at the house instead of a crowded restaurant.

Client and team dinners

Board dinners and client hosting in a private home, where the conversation can actually happen.

Thanksgiving to New Year’s

Christmas Eve, Christmas and New Year’s Eve at home, cooked in your kitchen.

See holiday menus → Wedding weekends

Rehearsal and welcome dinners

Family-style dinners at the family home or the wedding-party rental.

The first night you arrive

The table set and dinner served on the night everyone gets in, so nobody is shopping.

Passed and stationed bites

Hors d’oeuvres receptions at private homes across the state.

Common Rhode Island questions

Questions about Rhode Island bookings.

What towns in Rhode Island do you cover?

All of mainland Rhode Island. That includes Newport, Middletown, Portsmouth, Jamestown, Tiverton and Little Compton; Providence, Cranston, East Providence, Pawtucket, Bristol, Barrington and Warren; East Greenwich, Warwick, Coventry, West Greenwich and North Kingstown; and Narragansett, South Kingstown, Charlestown, Westerly and Watch Hill. If you are not sure about your town, ask.

Do you cook in Watch Hill and Westerly?

Yes. Watch Hill is mainland Westerly and part of the regular service area, along with Misquamicut, Weekapaug, Avondale and downtown Westerly. The Ocean House and the Watch Hill Inn run their own dining, so my bookings there are in the homes and rentals. A small travel charge applies for Westerly and Watch Hill, set out in your quote up front.

Do you cook in Narragansett and South Kingstown?

Yes. Bonnet Shores, Point Judith and the homes along Ocean Road in Narragansett, and Wakefield, Kingston, Matunuck and Snug Harbor in South Kingstown, are all on the regular calendar, in summer and through the winter.

Do you cook in East Greenwich and Kent County?

Yes. East Greenwich, Warwick, Coventry, West Greenwich and North Kingstown all book the same way. A dinner on a boat at Greenwich Cove is possible too. Send the boat name and the date, and we will talk through the galley during planning.

How many guests can you cook for?

Rhode Island dinners start at five guests, and there is no upper limit. For larger groups, additional service staff joins the booking so the format holds.

How far in advance should I book?

Two to three weeks is usually enough for most Rhode Island dinners. Summer weekends on the coast and the December holidays fill earlier, so plan on six to eight weeks for those.

How much does a private chef cost in Rhode Island?

Pricing depends on the menu, the service style and the date. The private chef cost guide lays it out in full.

What is the difference between a private chef and a caterer?

A caterer cooks in a commercial kitchen and delivers the food. I cook every course in your kitchen the night of the dinner, plate it at your counter, and stay through the meal. The private chef vs. catering guide goes into more detail.

What do I need to provide?

A working kitchen and your guests. Table linens, plates, silverware and water glasses are complimentary. Wine and drinks are yours to provide and pour, and I focus on the food. I am happy to recommend pairings that match the menu.

What kind of kitchen do you need?

A working oven, four burners and about five feet of clear counter for plating is the baseline. I bring the specialty tools I need. In a smaller rental kitchen, the menu is planned around what the space has.

Do you cook in vacation rentals and beach houses?

Yes. Rentals and beach houses are a regular booking across the state, especially the first night of a stay. More on that format in the vacation rental dinner guide.

Can you accommodate dietary restrictions?

Yes. Vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian, pescatarian, severe nut allergies, celiac, kosher-style and halal are all accommodated. The menu is built around the most restrictive eater, so nobody gets a modified version of someone else’s dinner.

Can you cook more than one meal over a weekend?

Yes. A Friday arrival dinner, a Sunday brunch and a last-night dinner is a common shape for a family week in Watch Hill or a holiday weekend in East Greenwich. I plan the menus together so nothing repeats.

Do you do brunch, hors d’oeuvres or rehearsal dinners?

Yes to all three. See the brunch page and the hors d’oeuvres page. Rehearsal and welcome dinners are usually family-style at the family home or the rental.

Can I be in the kitchen while you cook?

Of course. Some hosts like to keep me company during prep, and others stay out of it entirely. Either works.

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