A private chef for dinner in your villa in Tuscany
from€100 per person
Book
Sixteen years in the hotels of Siena, before the villas
Roberto Parato is a chef and cooking teacher. In professional kitchens since 1994, from the five-star hotels of Siena to the Tuscan villas where he now cooks for guests on holiday.
The value of the evening is as much practical as culinary: the ingredients, preparation, service and clean-up are handled at the villa, so your group can remain together at the table.
★★★★★Danelle pepe · September 2026 · on Google
Please know this was the best meal I had traveling through Italy . I wish I could take this chef along with me and my family to cook every night. Simply the best of the best
★★★★★August · June 2026 · on Google
Good food and very nice people. Not gourmet food but decent and nice tasting. I Would recommend. Only thing missing was probably a representation of the food. Overall a very good experience
Designed around the table you are gathering
The service is designed for couples, families with children and groups of friends sharing a villa, from two to 25. A service minimum applies to smaller tables because the preparation, the travel and the time in the kitchen remain much the same. Groups above 25 move to a personal review and tailored proposal before anything is confirmed.
From 2 guests
Up to 25 guests
More than 25? Send a personal request: Roberto reads it and answers himself.
The three dinners
All three dinners include the same service and the same time. What changes is how many courses reach the table and which list the dishes come from: La Tavola Toscana serves three, La Cena di Roberto four from the same list, Toscana d'Autore four from a list of its own.
La Tavola Toscana
Antipasto, a first course and dessert: dinner the way it is made here.
from€100 per person
Minimum €500
La Tavola Toscana
This is the dinner to start from, and for a lot of groups it is also the right one. Three courses: an antipasto to share while the first glass is poured, a first course made that day, a dessert. No meat main: if you want one, La Cena di Roberto has the same list of dishes and one course more. You see every dish on the list and choose one per course, the same for the whole table. This is not a restaurant menu. It is a dinner, and a dinner has a thread running through it. Roberto arrives in the afternoon with the shopping already done for you, cooks in your kitchen, serves at your pace, and leaves the worktop the way he found it. The groceries are paid separately on the day of the dinner, at cost (usually from about €50 in total). The dinner itself runs about three hours; he is in the house longer, because the work starts before it and the cleaning comes after.
from€100 per person
Minimum €500
| Tagliere di salumi e pecorini toscaniTuscan cured meats and pecorino cheeses at different ages, to share. | Antipasto |
| Crostini toscaniToasted Tuscan bread with the classic savoury spreads. | Antipasto |
| PanzanellaSoaked day-old bread with tomato, onion and basil. | Antipasto |
| Pici all'aglioneSiena's own pasta, rolled by hand one strand at a time: flour and water. | First course |
| Spaghetti al pomodoro e basilicoBronze-cut spaghetti, vine tomatoes, basil. | First course |
| Risotto al ChiantiRisotto stirred with the red wine of these hills. | First course |
| Pici al pesto di rucola e mandorleThe same pici, with a peppery rocket and almond pesto. | First course |
| TiramisùSavoiardi biscuits, coffee, mascarpone cream, cocoa. | Dessert |
| Panna cotta alla mentaBarely set cream, infused with fresh mint. | Dessert |
| Cantuccini con zabaione al vinsantoTuscan almond biscuits with a warm vin santo zabaione. | Dessert |
| Torta capreseAlmond and chocolate cake, made without flour. | Dessert |
La Cena di Roberto
The full dinner: antipasto, first course, meat and dessert.
from€115 per person
Minimum €500
La Cena di Roberto
This is the complete dinner, the one with the meat course. The list of dishes is the same as La Tavola Toscana: what changes is that four courses reach the table instead of three, and one of them is the main. In Tuscany the meat course is not an extra. It is the dish people stay seated around the longest: a tagliata of beef, a mixed grill, pork fillet with a potato tortino. You see every dish on the list and choose one per course, the same for the whole table. The service is identical: Roberto arrives in the afternoon with the shopping done for you, cooks in your kitchen, serves at your pace and leaves the kitchen in order. The groceries are paid separately on the day of the dinner, at cost (usually from about €50 in total). The dinner itself runs about three hours; he is in the house longer than that, because the work starts before it and the cleaning comes after.
from€115 per person
Minimum €500
| Tagliere di salumi e pecorini toscaniTuscan cured meats and pecorino cheeses at different ages, to share. | Antipasto |
| Crostini toscaniToasted Tuscan bread with the classic savoury spreads. | Antipasto |
| PanzanellaSoaked day-old bread with tomato, onion and basil. | Antipasto |
| Pici all'aglioneSiena's own pasta, rolled by hand one strand at a time: flour and water. | First course |
| Spaghetti al pomodoro e basilicoBronze-cut spaghetti, vine tomatoes, basil. | First course |
| Risotto al ChiantiRisotto stirred with the red wine of these hills. | First course |
| Pici al pesto di rucola e mandorleThe same pici, with a peppery rocket and almond pesto. | First course |
| Tagliata di vitellone con verdure di stagioneTuscan beef, seared hard and sliced, served rare. | Main course |
| Grigliata di carni e verdureSeveral cuts on the grill, with the vegetables over the same coals. | Main course |
| Filetto di maiale con tortino di patatePork fillet kept pink, with a potato tortino. | Main course |
| TiramisùSavoiardi biscuits, coffee, mascarpone cream, cocoa. | Dessert |
| Panna cotta alla mentaBarely set cream, infused with fresh mint. | Dessert |
| Cantuccini con zabaione al vinsantoTuscan almond biscuits with a warm vin santo zabaione. | Dessert |
| Torta capreseAlmond and chocolate cake, made without flour. | Dessert |
Toscana d'Autore
The dishes Roberto builds, not the ones he executes.
from€130 per person
Minimum €500
Toscana d'Autore
This is the menu with Roberto's signature on it, and the difference is in the dishes rather than in the adjectives. The list is not the one the other two dinners share: an egg held at low temperature until the yolk turns to cream, courgette flowers stuffed and fried, ravioli closed one at a time, a pork leg cooked slowly in Vernaccia wine, a beef cheek braised in Chianti, a caramelised millefoglie. These are long preparations, all of them made in your kitchen on the day, and some need equipment a holiday house does not have, which Roberto brings with him. That is why the dishes here are not interchangeable with the ones on the other menus. Everything else is the same as the other two dinners: four courses, one dish per course for the whole table, service at your pace, the kitchen left in order. Roberto does the shopping for you: the groceries are paid separately on the day of the dinner, at cost (usually from about €50 in total). The dinner runs about three hours, and he is in the house longer than that.
from€130 per person
Minimum €500
| Uovo a bassa temperatura con crema di pecorinoEgg cooked at low temperature, pecorino cream, crisp guanciale, truffle oil. | Antipasto |
| Fiori di zucca farciti e frittiStuffed courgette flowers, fried, with a sweet and sour sauce. | Antipasto |
| Bruschetta con pomodori confit e stracciatellaToasted bread, slow-roasted tomatoes, stracciatella. | Antipasto |
| Ravioli di mozzarella con pomodorini e basilicoFilled pasta closed by hand, fresh cherry tomatoes, basil sauce. | First course |
| Risotto ai fiori di zuccaRisotto finished with courgette flowers, delicate. | First course |
| Lasagnetta di zucca e salsicciaAn individual lasagnetta of pumpkin and sausage, pecorino cream, sliced almonds. | First course |
| Cosciotto di maiale alla VernacciaPork cooked down in Vernaccia wine, on a purée of zolfino beans. | Main course |
| Guancia di vitellone brasata al ChiantiBeef cheek braised slowly in Chianti until it gives way. | Main course |
| Millefoglie caramellata ai frutti di boscoCaramelised puff pastry, cream, forest berries. | Dessert |
| Delizia al limoneA small sponge dome soaked in lemon, covered in lemon cream. | Dessert |
Three courses or four?
The difference is one course. The dishes are the same: La Tavola Toscana serves three, antipasto, first course and dessert; La Cena di Roberto adds the meat main. Same cooking, same evening, one course more. Toscana d'Autore is not the step above either of them: it has a list of dishes of its own, so it is a different dinner rather than a longer one.
How the menu is chosen
For each course, the table chooses one dish from a short selection. This keeps the menu coherent and the service well paced. Allergies and dietary requirements are handled separately for each guest and confirmed before the shopping is completed.
What is included, and what is not
| Choosing the menu with you | In the price |
| The ingredients, in cooking classes | In the price |
| Roberto, in your kitchen | In the price |
| Preparation on site | In the price |
| Service of the courses, or the class itself | In the price |
| Cleaning of the kitchen and equipment used | In the price |
| Drinks | Not in the price |
| Wine | Not in the price |
| Groceries for dinners, paid at cost on the day | Not in the price |
| Flowers | Not in the price |
| Rentals | Not in the price |
| Table styling | Not in the price |
The price includes menu planning, preparation at the villa, the dinner service or the class, and cleaning of the kitchen and equipment used. In cooking classes the ingredients are included too. For dinners, Roberto does the shopping for you: the groceries are paid separately on the day of the dinner, at cost (usually from about €50 in total). Drinks, wine, flowers, rentals and table styling are separate. When requested, we can introduce an independent local supplier who will confirm their own price, terms and invoice directly with you.
Wine, flowers and table linen are separate from the dinner. If requested, we can introduce an independent local supplier; they confirm availability, price and terms with you and invoice you directly.
How the price is calculated
The per-person rate falls as the group grows because preparation, travel and set-up include fixed work. The total is the higher of the menu's service minimum and the rate for your group size. Both the minimum and final total are shown before payment.
La Tavola Toscana, 12 guests, mid-July in high season, in a villa in the Chianti, within the included travel.
€121 per person€1,452 total for 12 guestsgroceries paid separately, at cost
Roberto arrives in the afternoon, a few hours before you sit down. He cooks, sets the table if you want him to, and stays out of your way. Dinner usually starts between seven and eight and runs about three hours across three or four courses, depending on the menu you chose. He is in the house about six hours in all, and by the time he leaves the kitchen is clean.
How the evening runs, hour by hour
Afternoon
He arrives, shopping already done.
In your kitchen
He sets up; your day carries on.
You sit down
When you want to, not when the kitchen is ready.
The courses
Out at the pace of the conversation.
After
A clean kitchen, and he is gone.
Before
Afternoon
He arrives, shopping already done.
17:00
In your kitchen
He sets up; your day carries on.
19:30
You sit down
When you want to, not when the kitchen is ready.
20:00
The courses
Out at the pace of the conversation.
23:00
After
A clean kitchen, and he is gone.
Choose the experience, date, location, number of guests and menu, and review the full price before paying. A 30 per cent deposit reserves the date; the balance is due 14 days before the service. We then confirm allergies, dietary needs, children and the practical details of your villa kitchen. Roberto arrives with the ingredients, prepares the experience on site and leaves the working area in order.
Where Roberto cooks
Roberto cooks where the villas are: farmhouses at the end of white roads, estates in the vineyards, town apartments with a kitchen and a view. Home base is Siena, and most of his evenings happen within 1.5 hours of it. The drive is his to organise.
Private chef in SienaPrivate chef near Florence, ItalyPrivate chef in Val d'OrciaPrivate chef in Chianti
The evenings people book this for
Private dinners are often tied to a particular moment. The page below explains what changes for an anniversary dinner, while price and core service stay the same.
