Winter private chef · Rhode Island & Massachusetts

A winter dinner, in your home.

A winter menu cooked in your home across Rhode Island, Cape Cod, and the Boston metro. Built around long braises, root vegetables, blood oranges, and cold-water oysters at their best.

Reserve Your Winter Date
Winter cooking

The winter table.

Winter is the season that separates the menus that are thought through from the ones that aren’t. Anyone can put a salad on the table in July when the tomatoes are heavy and the basil is everywhere. Winter takes work. Long braises. Root vegetables roasted hard enough to caramelize. Citrus at full peak through January and February when nothing else is. The cold weather doesn’t make the cooking lighter. It makes it warmer.

The winter menu reflects that. Layered flavor built slowly. Short ribs braising for six hours. Duck breast scored, salted, rendered. Lamb loin cooked with port and fig until the fat runs deep. Blood orange used like a bright knife against the heavier proteins. Mushrooms turned dark in red wine.

The sourcing is local. Newport Seafood for the fish and shellfish, including the cold-water oysters that hit their best stretch in January. Aquidneck Meat for the filet, ribeye, lamb, and pork. Local farms for the root vegetables that carry the season. Narragansett Creamery for the cheese boards (Atwells Gold and Divine Providence are the regulars). Provençal Bakery for the bread.

Winter 2026

The full winter menu.

Every appetizer, entrée, and dessert in the current rotation. Duck breast, beef Wellington bites, lamb loin with port and fig, sticky toffee pudding. Updated each winter.

View the Full Menu (PDF)
A sample night

A winter evening on the table.

SAMPLE WINTER MENU

A Winter Dinner

FIVE COURSES · IN YOUR HOME

FIRST

Oysters

Meyer Lemon Granita, Fennel Pollen, Shallot Mignonette

SALAD

Butternut Squash and Apple Salad

Endive, Ricotta, Cranberries, Pecan, Balsamic Vinaigrette

FISH ★ STANDOUT

Chilean Sea Bass

Miso Glaze, Maitake Mushroom, Bok Choy, Dashi Broth, Soy-Marinated Soft Egg

MAIN ★ WINTER SIGNATURE

Duck Breast

Cherry Port Wine Reduction, Chestnut Polenta, Kale

DESSERT ★ MOST REQUESTED

Sticky Toffee Pudding

Toffee Sauce, Vanilla Bean Gelato

Sample menu only · Yours is built around your guests and what’s peaking the week of your dinner.

Last January

Twelve guests. One Newport house.

Last January, twelve guests at a house in Newport with the fire already going by 4:30 and snow falling slow against the windows. Beef Wellington bites passed during cocktail hour, the pastry still crisp, mushroom duxelles steaming when guests bit in. Oysters with meyer lemon granita and shallot mignonette next. Sweet potato bisque shooters with a thread of sage oil. Duck breast with cherry port wine reduction, chestnut polenta, and kale, plated, the duck rendered crisp on top and the polenta thick enough to hold a spoon up. Lobster risotto family-style at the center of the table, fra diavolo and parmesan, passed twice. Sticky toffee pudding with toffee sauce and vanilla bean gelato, set out as the room moved closer to the fire and the second bottle of red got opened.

That’s the shape. Yours gets built differently.

How a winter night runs

Three steps. One night.

01
Reach out
Send the date, headcount, and what kind of night you’re planning. I usually reply within 24 hours.
02
Menu design
I send a custom proposal, three to five courses, built around your guests and what’s peaking that week. You approve, change, or swap.
03
Event night
I arrive 2.5 hours before guests, prep, cook, plate, serve through the meal, and clean before I leave. The kitchen looks like the morning.
Common winter questions

Questions about winter.

When does the winter menu rotate?
Winter 2026 runs from late November through early March. Spring rotates in mid-March. Some winter ingredients (blood oranges, deep-storage root vegetables, Rhode Island cold-water oysters) hit their best window in January and February.
Do you do New Year’s Eve dinners?
Yes. New Year’s Eve is one of the most-requested dates of the year. The format leans toward show-stopper courses: beef Wellington bites passed during cocktail hour, lobster risotto, duck breast with cherry port, sticky toffee pudding. Book six to eight weeks out at minimum.
Do you do private Christmas dinners?
Yes. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day dinners cook across Newport, Middletown, Providence, Cape Cod, and the Boston metro. The Italian Feast of the Seven Fishes is a regular Christmas Eve format. Most Christmas dates fill in October.
What’s the most popular winter dish?
The duck breast with cherry port wine reduction, chestnut polenta, and kale is the winter signature. The Chilean sea bass with miso glaze and dashi broth is the standout fish course. The filet mignon with red wine reduction is the most-ordered steak.
What’s the most-requested winter dessert?
The sticky toffee pudding with toffee sauce and vanilla bean gelato. The chocolate hazelnut tart with salted caramel is the year-round favorite.
Do you do beef Wellington?
The full beef Wellington dinner is reserved for Christmas, Christmas Eve, and New Year’s Eve bookings. Beef Wellington bites passed during cocktail hour are available year-round through the winter menu.
How many guests can you cook for?
Most winter dinners land between six and fourteen guests.
Can you accommodate dietary restrictions?
Yes. Winter has strong plant-forward options anchored by the lion’s mane steak with chimichurri, butternut squash agnolotti, and king oyster scallops with cider beurre blanc.
How far in advance should I book?
Two to three weeks lead time minimum for standard winter dinners. Holiday weeks fill earliest: Thanksgiving in September, Christmas in October, New Year’s Eve six to eight weeks out.
Where do you serve?
All of Rhode Island plus Cape Cod and the Boston metro suburbs.
Can you do a winter braise-anchored dinner?
Yes. The classic winter format. Short rib braised in red wine, a slow-roasted lamb shoulder, oxtail ragu over pappardelle. The braise sits at the center of the meal and the rest of the courses build around it. Particularly popular for January and February dinner parties when the table wants to settle in for a while.
Do you cook with blood oranges in their winter window?
Yes. Blood oranges hit their peak window in January and February. They show up in the salad course, in the dessert (blood orange olive oil cake, blood orange semifreddo), and in cocktails as a fresh-squeezed mixer.
Can you do a Super Bowl dinner format?
Yes. Super Bowl dinners run more relaxed. A long table of rich shared plates instead of plated courses. Think braised short rib sliders, lobster mac and cheese, a heaping board of charcuterie and cheese, dirty fries with bone marrow gravy, and a dessert that travels (sticky toffee pudding cups, brownie sundae bar).
Will leftovers cover the next day?
Yes. Winter braises in particular leave generous leftovers. The fridge is left organized with leftovers labeled and reheating instructions before I leave.
Do you handle the wine pairings for a winter dinner?
Wine sourcing is your call. I do not stock or markup beverages. I will recommend pairings that match the menu (Barolo or Brunello for the braises, a heavier Pinot for the duck, an off-dry Riesling for the spice-forward dishes) and serve what you provide throughout the night.
Other seasons

Beyond winter.

Late March – early June
Spring
 Mid-June – early September
Summer
 Mid-September – late November
Fall
 Custom holiday format
Holiday Menus
Reserve your winter date

Tell me about your night.

Holiday weeks fill fast. Send the date, headcount, location, and what kind of night you’re planning. I usually reply within 24 hours.

Inquire About Your Winter Dinner