There are no shortage of great things to say about Chef Josh. We've used him twice now for different celebrations and he has knocked it out of the park each time. In fact, after his latest visit we all agreed we needed to start bringing him in quarterly. Chef's cooking style is best described as transformative. He takes ingredients you'd never dream of being the star of the dish and makes it the most delicious thing you've ever tasted. Our last dinner we reqested to be completely vegetarian and he did not disappoint. Even the non-vegetarian at the dinner was blown away and left being the perfect amount of full. My husband avoids certain veggies in our day to day (texture) and the way Chef Josh cooks - well we've never left a plate bare, I can tell you that much. And when Chef Josh isn't looking.. we may have licked our plates clean. Pickling, crisping, pureeing, caramelizing - everything he puts in front of you "WOWs". Besides the food he serves, which is well worth the money, Josh's service is unparalleled. He is prompt, friendly and wonderful to chat with. He brings everything in and does all clean up as if he was never even there. Whether it's a date night, an intimate gathering or a group to impress - I would recommend hiring Chef Josh 110%. If you're even considering a private chef, look no further because there truly is no better! read more

Chef Joshua Alkire - Personal Chefs Near Me

4.999 stars. Chef Josh made my 40th birthday party memorable and amazing for 22 people at my home. We asked a few questions to start and knew he was the right chef for us right away. He doesn't have a set menu, but sources the ingredients the morning of depending on what looks good and what's in season. We had three or four passed appetizers, a salad course, a grouper / risotto course, and a caramel bar for dessert. Everything was so delicious and all of the guests raved. I have no idea how he was able to cook all of that food for that many people in our home kitchen and make it so flavorful. To keep all of the food at a perfect temperature must have been extremely challenging. Chef Josh was such a cool person also, entertaining, always happy, and so respectful of our home. Thanks so much, Josh. We hope to have you help us out again at our next event. read more

We had Josh serve us for my wife's 60th birthday! Josh did an incredible job and exceeding our expectations. This was the first time we have ever used an in house chef for a dinner party. Josh made the entire process seamless and handled all of the details. He arrived on time and left our house cleaner than before he arrived. We had 3 amazing appetizers, a wonderful white fish dish, phenomenal beet salad and over the top steak and gnocchi main course. Josh topped off the evening with a pear fruit and cake desert. Josh was very personable and was very interactive throughout the entire evening. Thank you very much for making my wife's birthday a memorable evening. I highly recommend Josh is you are looking a personal chef. read more

We had Chef Joshua do a holiday dinner at our house for 14. It exceeded all expectations that we had. Every dish he made was super unique...nothing like what you get at a traditional restaurant. The ingredients were fresh and everything was very tasty. He also had a server assist him to enhance the experience. We will definitely use him again for future events. You'll be glad you hired him when you do. read more

Chef Joshua Alkire - Personal Chefs Near Me

Chef Joshua created an amazing meal for my 40th birthday party! We hosted 22 people and the food was absolutely delicious and exciting (everything, from the bluefin tuna appetizer to the NY Strip steak entree, was carefully and deliciously crafted and we were all blown away with the excellent/unique flavors). In addition to a delicious and inviting meal, Chef Joshua was wonderful to work and communicate with, as he is very responsive and friendly. Thank you, Chef, for the excellent experience! read more

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Josh made our last evening celebrating a major family milestone the best it could be. thank you!! food amazing, service amazing, Josh is amazing. thank you!! read more

We rented an AirB&B in Mission Beach for New Years Eve weekend and wanted one nice dinner where we didn't have to cook, eat take-out from plastic containers, or sit outside somewhere in the cold. This was the perfect solution!!! Chef Josh did the grocery shopping, the cooking and the cleaning in the comfort of our own rental home! 2 appetizers, a salad, 2 entrees and a dessert! YUM! Thanks Chef, for making our bellies happy! read more

Chef Joshua Alkire - Personal Chefs Near Me

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What a memorable evening this was! My husband surprised me and our two college kids for my 50th birthday (during stay at home orders) with an evening of exceptional culinary experience thanks to Chef Josh. He worked in our kitchen to deliver the most outstanding meal. Four appetizers and five entrees later, we were in a rarely achieved taste/texture/scent heaven. Chef Josh put some genius in every dish he made. They were pieces of art, each unique, delicate and full of flavors that delighted many of our senses. I cannot thank him enough for making my 50th birthday, during the pandemic, the happiest and most delectable of moments! Thank YOU Chef Josh! read more

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We can't say enough great things about Chef Josh and the experience that he delivers. Josh cooked for a party of 10 in a private house on Mission Beach for my Mother-in-Law's 70th birthday. Pre-event communication was outstanding, and we had the opportunity to provide a list of wants/not wants. From there, Josh took over and devised an amazing multi course dinner based on what was fresh at the market. This is what he served at our house. Appetizers: - Wild boar meatballs with babaganoush - Fried japanese eggplant - Avocado tacos with pickled turnip tortilla - Apple wrapped dates stuffed with roasted almond and Jarlsberg cheese Dinner: - Orange vinaigrette marinated beet salad with celery root and cashews - Pickled heirloom melon salad with jicama, cucumber, rhubarb, radish and red onion - Sweet onion and butter roasted brussels sprouts, with purple cauliflower, charred parsnip and corn - soubise. - Tomato and herb broiled halibut with laurel roasted potatoes - Grilled prime tri-tip over white wine cremini mushrooms, French lentils and fresh herbs Dessert: Roasted plum with cabernet plum sauce over a fresh biscuit with vanilla cream and brown sugar Josh arrived about 2:30 for a 5pm start, and cooked the entire meal from scratch. He served each course, and even cleaned up afterwards. The food was epic, the service perfect, and Josh is a great guy on top of it all. I can't imagine booking anyone else in the San Diego area. Chef Josh was outstanding, and we look forward to booking him again next year. It was the highlight of our trip. read more

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I don't even know where to begin with this review, there are TOO MANY POSITIVES to write about. To start, I hired Josh to cook a Sunday dinner for my brother-in-law's bachelor party. Booking with Josh was a breeze. Also, event day coordination was a breeze. Josh simply showed up on time and worked his magic. Josh is a cool dude, and true professional. He was talking, laughing, and watching football with us while at the same time preparing a 5-star multiple course meal. I believe I speak for the entire bachelor party when I say that this was one of the best and most unique experiences of our lives! The food was astounding from first start to finish. Some highlights were Tri-Tip, Halibut, Corn with Duck, "double eggplant surprise", mango Gorgonzola nachos, avocado tacos with pickled turnip shells; the list goes on and on!! Each dish was as delicious and creative as the next. Hire Josh. He will make you look like a genius event planner and add good times and great food to any event!! read more

Chef Joshua Alkire - Personal Chefs Near Me

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We hosted a bachelorette dinner at our Airbnb and Chef Josh totally delivered! The food was so creative, unique and VERY delicious. Chef brought everything he needed to make this amazing meal and even clean up everything. He made it seamless to host this event and gave us an upscale experience. Definitely booking again if I host an event in San Diego. read more

We hired Joshua to cook for my wife's birthday party with close family (8 people). Everything was prepared to perfection. Fantastic experience, much better than going to a restaurant. I would definitely hire him again. read more

We celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary with our 6 kids. Josh set up a FABULOUS dinner for us. He brings everything and cooks up a storm of appetizers, salad, fish, meat, dessert. It was a total pleasure to have Josh work in our VRBO kitchen and create such a feast for us. Fresh, creative and yummy. read more

Chef Josh was absolutely amazing. He was extremely personable, communicative, and above all else a fantastic chef. I would absolutely recommend him to anyone. read more

Chef Joshua Alkire - The main course - Personal Chefs Near Me

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Chef Josh cooked for our family in San Diego.... We all just loved his food and he exceeded all expectations. Thank you Chef Josh....we will be back!!! read more

What an amazing experience. I hired Chef Joshua for my 10 year wedding anniversary dinner. It was during. The COVID lockdown and he was extremely polite and wore a mask the entire time he cooked. He ended up making us a stunning 8 course tasting meal and my wife and kids absolutely loved it. He explained to our kids what he was making while he was cooking it was almost a cooking class at the same time. I would recommend chef Josh to anyone that wants to take a night off from cooking. Can't wait to use him again soon!! read more

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Chef Josh is one of my favorite elements of our annual girls retreat. He surprises us with dishes we could never imagine that are spectacular. His frienly personality and ability to create such a unique and delicious experience is top notch. read more

Chef Joshua Alkire - Personal Chefs Near Me

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Chef Josh put together the most amazing spread for our friend's party. The food was incredible and he was a blast to have around. High recommend him for any of your events and would have no hesitation booking him again. Thanks for a great time, Josh! read more

We are a family of four who rented a house in mission beach this summer. Joshua came to the house and cooked a spectacular meal that we will never forget. It was a memorable experience and will for sure call Joshua again. The food was fabulous as he only uses local fresh ingredients. You will not be disappointed. I'm a very good cook myself, not always satisfied with restaurant quality food. Joshua cooks on a whole other level! read more

Joshua was amazing! Easy to communicate and plan with, food was outstanding and well worth the price, and he was so accommodating and nice. Definitely hire him for your next event! read more

Chef Josh was amazing! He is warm and engaging, and prepares fabulous meals that everyone enjoyed, and leaves the kitchen spotless when he is done. He prepared three meals for four families that had gathered on vacation, each one more delicious than the last, from unique appetizers to wonderful main courses, to fabulous fresh desserts. You can't go wrong with Chef Josh! read more

For the past six years Chef Josh has prepared meals for an annual women's retreat as well as a corporate retreat, and every year, he knocks it out of the park! Not only is his food amazing, but as a person, he's the best! Josh has become a friend. He's super chill, fun and patient (as we are constantly lurking around his space and asking questions). We all love Josh and our retreats wouldn't be the same without him! read more

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We honestly can't say enough good things about Josh. He came to our house and made dinner for 6 people. He's super personable and the kindest man ever. His food is amazing, different, and yummy. Highly recommend him to make your night extra special. Thank you Joshua!!! read more

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If you're looking for a memorable, special, and delicious meal - call Chef Josh. Not only was he flexible in the schedule and menu for my parents' surprise birthday dinner, he set a really relaxed atmosphere at our vacation rental. He brought all his own materials and was just as happy prepping away as he was chatting with us. He even entertained our close-to-bedtime 3 yr old's questions of "Who's THAT guy?" :) The food was SO FRESH - it's evident he really scours the right farmers markets for the freshest foods, while keeping our budget in mind. One of the best meals of my life, from the personable service to the mouth-watering food, I'd recommend Chef Josh to anyone. read more

Chef Joshua Alkire - From appetizer to dessert, everything was fresh, local, and incredibly delicious. - Personal Chefs Near Me

First class experience at a reasonable price. Cannot say enough about Joshua - except that we're about to book him again (forgot to leave this review after our first experience). He does a fantastic job at explaining and engaging with his guests while not taking over the evening. And the food was as good as any 5 star restaurant - truly a unique and luxury food experience (in a seven course meal!!!). Highly recommend!!! read more

Chef Joshua helped us create an experience in celebration of my wife's birthday. This idea turned out to be the perfect gift, which my wife absolutely loved, and our whole family enjoyed. Working with Joshua is so easy. He is super flexible, reasonable, and down to earth. He took care of all the details while keeping plenty of room to accommodate any request or preference. He strikes the perfect balance in demonstrating his culinary expertise with an authentic keep-it-real presentation. Some of our dishes were like listening to a new catchy song that sounds awesome, and oozes quality, but seems so simple that you can't believe you never thought of it. Other dishes were layered with complexity that you wouldn't even attempt on your own. And the main course is what you'd expect from a high caliber personal chef. Something you can do yourself, but maybe not quite as good, or rich, or hot, or perfect... presented just to your liking without having to lift a finger. Meantime, getting set up takes a while to prepare, so you might consider having something else to do besides just drink wine because before you know it, your head will end up feeling a little too much like mine did the morning after... whao. It was worth it though... haha! Highly recommended. read more

My wife and I wanted to do something extra special for our 10-yr anniversary, so we decided to hire a chef for a private dinner. After reading glowing reviews and checking out his blog, we decided to go with Chef Josh. We didn't have the budget for exotic ingredients, but regardless, Chef Josh worked with us and was able to craft an experience for us that was exactly what we were looking for, without breaking the bank. We already had high expectations, and he still managed to exceed them. For our experience he put together an 8-course dinner, and every single dish was unique and exceptional. We decided to give him freedom in choosing our menu, which was preferable, since he bought the produce fresh from local farmer's markets literally just before coming to prepare the meal. Although we paid more than we would have at a nice restaurant, for us it was a dining experience that far exceeded the nicest restaurants we've ever been to. We've got absolutely no reservations in recommending Chef Josh for whatever event you might have, big or small. I'll upload photos so you can see the amazing dishes he prepped for us. read more

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This review is based solely on communication with Chef Alex as we had to cancel and did not get to experience his cooking. He was very fast to reply to all of my emails, within 30 minutes I would say, and was very accommodating with all of my requests. He was professional and answered all of my questions, sent sample menus and overall was just so polite. Working with him was so pleasant that I felt compelled to write a review because we had to cancel. I plan on using him for my next event for sure! read more

Chef Josh came to our home and prepared several courses of flavor bursting appetizers, sides, entrees and dessert for my family of 8 including 2 toddlers. It was truly a great culinary experience for all of us. Everything was made from scratch in my kitchen including my fabulous brownie bday dessert that was served with home made caramel and chocolate sauces, whipped cream and bananas. This dish of brownie had so much yummy flavors that I was simply in heaven. Of course count on me to begin with the dessert description! Chef Josh arrived with multiple bags of groceries and his chef bag of tools. I was amazed to see the numerous fresh produce that came out of the bags some of which I was not familiar with. We didn't know what's on the menu as Chef does know himself until he goes and buys what looks good at the market. From those bags, Chef Josh produced 5 appetizers. The most unusual and was the favorite was the grilled romanesco churro. The flavor and texture just exploded in my mouth with the first bite. He also made babbaganous served over fried eggplant, another winner! I actually saw him made fresh ricotta, didn't know it was that simple. He served that over some kind of toast with a grilled grape. Also served stuffed fresh fig and avocado taco rolled in sliced pickled turnip which had a surprising bite to it. He prepared a grilled vegetable dish with the sauce made from kohlrabi leaves-heavenly. Another veggie dish was a cornucopia of pickled root vegetables slice and diced creatively with various flavors popping with every bite. Two main entrees were served. The first was sea bass served over foie grass. The fish was cooked just right, flaky, tender with that buttery taste you get from sea bass when cooked right. The second entry, as if the sea bass was not enough, was tri tip served over freshly made gnocchi topped by carnitas. Can you imagine the flavors in this one dish??? I think when he was done, we were served 10 courses. I frankly don't know how anyone can accomplish this with everything being made from scratch, no shortcuts whatsoever and each and every dish getting five stars from all of us. Chef Josh was very professional, friendly and answered all our questions. Needless to say, he's also very hard working. I can't wait for my next dinner party so I can have Chef Josh back at my home. read more

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One of the best meals of my life! Josh was super friendly, very efficient and left the kitchen spotless when he left. 10/10 would recommend! Great work Josh! read more

Chef Josh so carefully picked out the best ingredients for our friends birthday dinner. He was such a joy to be around while he was cooking, he felt like he was part of the group! The food was phenomenal and made our first experience so memorable! read more

Chef Josh was hired to cook a 3-course birthday dinner meal for 16 people. Chef Josh not only cooked an incredible meal effortlessly, but he was also a joy to have around and brought a great energy to our event. The dishes were varied and flavorful and I would recommend him for any of your cooking or event needs! read more

I've hired chef Joshua many times over the years, everything from date nights to bachelor parties and he's always on time with amazing creations from fresh local ingredients. His great personality adds to the flare. You won't be disappointed! read more

Josh cooked dinner at my house for a 60th birthday celebration for 6 people. He was wonderful to work with and the food was delicious. It was such a nice treat to have someone cook 5 courses and appetizers for us, so we could enjoy the wonderful evening outside dining. I would definitely hire a Josh again. The cost of the dinner was very affordable. read more

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We contracted Josh for a birthday dinner with friends. Josh was personable, knowledgeable, and made unique dishes that were fan favorites! Without question he exceeded expectations. Highly recommend Chef Josh if you're looking to spice up your at-home event. read more

We were in San Diego for a bachelorette party and Josh was our private chef for an evening. He prepared a multi-course meal for us and served it to us while we sat on the back patio looking out at the ocean. I think he made us 3-4 different appetizers followed by 4 courses: salmon salad, stuffed eggplant dish, truffle mashed potatoes and steak, and dessert. Everything was absolutely amazing. Josh quietly prepared everything for us while we mingled and drank wine and then brought us each dish one-by-one. We could not have been more pleased with Josh. His food was amazing and he was very personable and sweet. We really appreciated that relaxing night on the patio. read more

Chef Joshua Alkire - Intently listening to our Chef about all of the delicious dishes he prepared for us! - Personal Chefs Near Me

We've had several great Chef Josh nights. Great fresh food with creative preparation and wild wonderful flavors. read more

Chef Joshua Alkire - Personal Chefs Near Me

Recently we rented a house in Encinitas for a family reunion. Our children surprised us with a personal chef for our 65th & 60th Birthday. Chef Josh presented an amazing meal!! Starting with appetizers outside by the fire pit. Each one was amazing. Our meal was superb and dessert was over the top! Thanks for a great experience Chef!! I highly recommend Chef Joshua for your next gathering! read more

Chef Joshua Alkire - Personal Chefs Near Me

Chef Josh is a true professional and culinary genius. His easy-going, creative, and no-ego style are a welcomed addition to any group gathering. We have hired Josh for 6 years in a row for our annual iGnite Retreat as well as a corporate onsite event. He delivers daily inspiration during these multi-day events, and everyone is always excited to see that Josh is in the house! I would recommend Chef Josh highly to anyone looking for cooking demonstrations, personal chef services on a regular basis, high profile corporate events, or casual to formal dinner parties. He is a delight to work with! read more

Amazingly talented chef focused on pleasing a wide variety of preferences - in one meal! Friendly, professional and inspiring to watch him create with passion. Highly recommend the sushi lesson which was fun for everyone, and thoroughly enjoyed a completely different experience each of the three nights we were lucky enough to have him! Thanks, Chef Josh! read more