Frequently Asked Questions

Chef Jake resides in the North Texas area so Dallas, Frisco, Southlake, Grapevine, Highland Village, The Colony, Argyle, Little Elm, Coppell and Lewisville are all areas within the limit.  Please fill out a contact form with your address to check if we service your location. 

Culinary Craftsman is a Personal Chef service that cooks in your home. I do not offer drop-off or delivery options. 

 I will provide a list of equipment needed following our consultation call. We require our clients to provide standard kitchen equipment including cutting boards, mixing bowls, pots, pans, sheet pans, cooking utensils, and CONTAINERS if doing meal prep. For special event dinners, brunches, or hors-d'oeuvres parties,  clients are required to provide dinner plates, bowls, cutlery and glassware, along with cooking utensils. If doing buffet style brunches, we will talk about platters or if catering equipment rentals would be an option during the consultation call.

 I believe in using real, whole, natural ingredients. I can accommodate any personal preferences, dietary needs, and  allergies. I can also accommodate specific diets including but not limited to gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian, paleo, whole30, and ketogenic diets. 

Absolutely! This is one of the reasons why I exist: to offer delicious, healthy meals no matter what! Many clients have very specific dietary needs which we are happy to accommodate. 

I do not calculate calories or macronutrients. I focus on cooking to increase nutrient density and can create a customized menu that aligns with your nutritional goals. If you'd like to provide us with specific nutrition guidelines and measurements to follow, I can portion the food according to your instructions. 

A standard Meal Prep Service includes the preparation of 3 different entrees that yield 4 portions of each entree. So that is a total of 12 dishes. These can be eaten interchangeably for lunches or dinners. Add-on options for additional entrees, breakfasts, snacks, desserts, and sides are available for an additional cost, to further customize the standard package. 

Most clients use the Meal Prep services once a week. I may recommend using the service twice a week depending on the size of your household, the quantity of food you’d like prepared, and how fresh you prefer having the food. If you are hosting a Special Dinner event, I will be there the day of the event and possibly the day before depending on what the Menu and schedule looks like.

 I recommend consuming the meal prep within 4-5 days, per FDA guidelines. To extend its life, freeze items within the first 4-5 days to defrost and enjoy later. You can also request a freezer-friendly menu. 

I provide a customized menu for you on a weekly basis based on your preferences. You may make specific requests or ask for modifications before our weekly deadline at 12pm on Fridays 

For Meal Prep service, it is a weekly recurring service. Together, we agree upon a weekly day and time slot, based on our availability. I offer two time slots: the morning (starting between 9am-10am) and the afternoon (starting between 2-3 pm). Mondays are our highest demand day of the week and are often fully booked, so please be prepared to be flexible with other scheduling options if your first choice of day or time is unavailable. The service will recur weekly unless you have notified me of a cancellation with at least 48 hours' notice. 

Booking for a Special Dinner event requires a minimum of 20 days in advance. That will give us the time needed to plan and make sure your Special Dinner comes out just as you wanted.

On Sundays, Mondays, and Tuesdays, we’re only able to accommodate weekly clients. We may have a little flexibility on Thursdays or Fridays. Contact us to inquire.

For Meal Prep, we have a 48 hour cancellation policy. If your meal prep is canceled IN the 48 hour mark of your scheduled service, the meal prep will be charged in full. If you need to skip a week due to travel or other obligations, please inform us of any dates as far in advance (BEFORE) as possible with at least 48 hours’ notice. 

For Special Dinner events we do require a deposit of $350 to reserve your date. The Deposit will be deducted from the total on the invoice.

Cancellations for Special events, we will happily return your full deposit if you cancel at least 20 days before your reserved event. Should you cancel LESS than 20 days before your reserved date of the event, your entire deposit will be forfeited.

For Meal Prep, No, You do not have to be home for the service although we will need access to get inside. We often cook for clients while they are at work and they come home to a clean kitchen and refrigerator stocked full of deliciousness! If you are home, no biggie, the more the merrier. 

I will do the grocery shopping first thing in the morning. Grocery costs typically range between $150-$300 depending on the meals and inventory of your kitchen. The receipt will be kept for proof and the total of the grocery receipt will be added to the invoice for the service. Which will then be paid in full the day of the service. Clients may request to source their own groceries, but that usually leads to missed ingredients. 

For Special Dinner events having a credit card on file is required. Depending on the menu and difficulty, grocery shopping may be done the day of or a couple days in advance. Also, could be from a couple different stores as we try and find the best quality for the right price. All receipts will be kept. Reimbursement from the client to chef will be required the same day groceries are bought, (if not bought through credit card) communication will be key between the client and the chef.

We recommend using glass containers. Glass containers helps keep food fresh, free of harmful chemicals, durable, easy to clean and versatile when considering reheating options. We are happy to use any containers that you already have in stock. If you need to stock up on containers or upgrade your current collection, we highly recommend, both from amazon, either Pyrex 6 cup 7211 Rectangle Glass Food Storage Containers with Blue Plastic Lids OR PrepNaturals 36 oz Glass Meal Prep Containers. (Lids are sometimes a little iffy on the PrepNaturals but the containers lets you choose if you want compartments or not). Smaller Pyrex such as 1.5 or 2 cup containers are good for snacks, dressings, breakfasts, etc..

Absolutely! We love cooking for the whole family and can help your little ones eat more home-cooked food. However you choose to feed your children, we’re here to support in the execution of the cooking. From baby-led weaning to puree feeding and sneaking in vegetables for picky toddlers, from personal experience I've done it all.

For Meal Prep, Payment arrangements will be set up in the consultation and payments will be paid in full the same day of the service. I accept Zelle, Venmo, PayPal, or Cash. If paying by credit card we will need to have that info stored on file. (3.5% processing fee).

For Special Dinner events, the deposit will be collected to reserve the date. Grocery Shopping reimbursements will be paid the same day groceries are bought. The day/evening of the event an invoice of the service will be given to the client, which will then be payed for by the client. We will charge you for all direct costs that we incur to stage your special event. Typically, these charges are for food items, beverages, rentals,(if any) etc.. Pricing does not include taxes(8.25%) which will be added to your invoice or any gratuity(If any). I accept Zelle, Venmo, PayPal, or Cash. If paying by credit card we will need to have that info stored on file. (3.5% processing fee).

You can check out some of the pictures on the website of my real meal preps, which display examples of individually portioned meals and family style plating options. They will then be labeled with what it is and reheating instructions will be attached.

Awesome!! Fill out the "Contact Us" Form, provide your information and tell us more about what you’re looking for. We will be in touch to set up an initial consultation if we’re able to accommodate your location.

Gratuity may possibly be applied for mainly larger parties. For a party of 15 or more, we will hire additional staff to assist the service.

For Weekly Meal Prep, it is a flat rate of $325 per week/service. For Special Dinner events/ Brunches/ Hors D'oeuvres party, The pricing reflects a rate per head and if the date falls on a premium date. It is dependent on the menu choice, whether it is an Elegant menu or Staple menu. And the number of guests attending. Prices can range from $165-$225 for 3 guests or less, $150-$215 for 4 to 8 guests, $125-$195 for 9 to 15 guests.