Richard made the most delicious paella in our backyard with professionalism and a thoughtful presence. He was extremely easy to work with and very generous with his time and attention to detail. I highly recommend him for any special occasion. read more

Cooking For Friends - Richard - Personal Chefs Near Me

Richard is amazing!!! And the paella was just amazing and delicious! He left us the lobster head and shells which we made delicious lobster miso soup! It was fun to watch how he cooked! Highly recommend him!! read more

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With COVID-19, my husband and I decided to cancel our planned trip for our 10 year anniversary. I also just didn't feel super comfortable going to a restaurant these days. We opted to do a socially distanced lunch with just our close family to celebrate and reached out to Richard for help creating a safe, celebratory meal in our backyard. He did an AMAZING job. He prepared a feast of lobster tails, steak and paella for the six of us. It was a wonderful way to celebrate. We are so grateful to Richard for stepping in to create such a wonderful meal for our special day. read more

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Richard single handedly catered our welcome dinner for our wedding and it was such an amazing and fun time! The paella not only looked beautiful but it tasted delicious and everyone told us how much they enjoyed his food. He is such a sweet guy and super easy to work with! We cannot recommend him enough! If you want something unique and tasty at your next party, definitely go with Cooking with Friends! read more

We gathered our friends and neighbors in the Miramar neighborhood of HMB For a change of seasons celebration, and for a change of pace, though love the Paellas and whole roast pig over the years, Richard created a classic bayou jambalaya in his authentic kettle purchased from New Orleans. If you are not familiar, Jambalaya is a popular dish of West African, French, and Spanish influence, consisting mainly of meat and vegetables mixed with rice. We chose the chicken and andouille sausage, just enough spice but not overpowering. We were entertained by Richards process using his kettle and paddle as he added the ingredients. We all thoroughly enjoyed Richard's delicious traditional take on a Bayou classic, as good if not better than his paellas. The entire experience was excellent, and an added bonus... he was cooking for friends.. read more

Cooking For Friends - Jambalaya in the kettle - Personal Chefs Near Me

Richard is an amazing chef. He made us this fantastic paella with 7 meats and shellfish. It was amazing! Presentation and the taste were beyond what I had expected. Richard showed up on time for both site inspection for his cooking equipments and the day of the party. He wore a mask through the entire cooking time, which was more than 3-4 hours. He was well organized with food preparation and cleaning up afterward. If I could, I would give him 10 stars! Although it was a small party because of COVID pandemic, our friends, my husband and I were able to have a wonderful birthday celebration. I highly recommend him. Thank you, Richard! read more

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Wow. Great food plus it's quite a show and interesting for the guests to see him cook. We had the seafood and the chicken/chorizo paellas - both delicious. He also made caprese skewers and bruschetta and plated them quite beautifully. The churros were also delicious. Everything is made fresh and onsite. Thanks Richard! read more

We had Richard cater my husband's 70th birthday party. He made three different kinds of paella: seafood, vegetarian & chicken and chorizo. All three were excellent. He is a pleasure to work with, we arranged what to serve by email. Our party started at noon, Richard arrived at 8:30 to start cooking and had everything ready to go by the time the party started. The serving size is very generous and the price is more than reasonable. We cannot recommend having Richard cater your next event highly enough! We would give him 10 starts of we could read more

Life! Saver!! Richard took the lead and put together an amazing BBQ for our school families. The planned event quickly grew too big for us to handle, yet we still wanted to have an impressive affair. That's where Richard and Cooking for Friends comes in. We were not able to give him much notice, but he quickly said, "I've got it." And he did. Everyone loved his food, and we loved the fact that he could put together a great menu quickly and save our event. We will be forever grateful, and will definitely Cooking for Friends for all our events. read more

Fan-freaking-tastic. This guy makes the BEST paella. I have never been a fan of shrimp, but his cooking magic has turned that around. Highly recommend him for any event or occasion that calls for paella. Richard is also very nice to interact with and is a generous chef. read more

My husband and I were very lucky to use the services of Richard Poncini for our wedding on June 26, 2010. The service was awesome, the food couldn't be better and all our guests loved the delicious paella for 70 amongst other yummy things. He used real saffron from Spain and the best products to create such a great meal that everybody enjoyed and celebrated. He was early to make sure everything would be ready after the "I do." And it was. Everything was perfect for our special day. I've been recommending him verbally to friends and colleagues for the last 6 years. We were really fortunate to have found him and I strongly recommend him. read more

Richard was fantastic all the way through. As a celiac, cross contamination and gluten free was super important for our wedding. Richard was on top of making sure everything was gluten free and took extra care with cross contamination. Day of, he made it so easy on a bride that had a million last minute things to sort out.. and was extremely accommodating when we ended up being way behind schedule. And to top it off, his paella was the absolute best paella I've had... just incredible. I wish he had a restaurant so I could order it weekly! And people were raving about his grilled chicken. We will definitely be using Richard again for any future catering events! Thanks Richard! read more

My wife and I hired Cooking for Friends to cater our wedding in October 2019. First off, the owner and chef, Richard, made the planning process easy and fun. We had Richard come to our home to do the initial tasting, which was a treat. Richard is an experienced chef and his passion for bringing people together through food is remarkable. Our wedding guests absolutely RAVED about the entire food experience throughout the evening. It's one of the first things we hear when we catch up with friends and family about the wedding. The appetizers, the roasted pigs, and the seafood and chicken/chorizo paella were on point. Many of our guests said that our wedding meal will forever stand out as one of the best meals they've ever had, whether at a wedding or not. Richard cooked all the food in the center of the reception thus becoming a feature of the celebration. People could smell the delicious wafting aromas of the paella as they mingled during cocktail hour. Richard was happy to answer questions from guests interested in learning more about the food and the process. He is such a personable and down-to-earth guy. The food is perfect for buffet style serving. Oh yeah, and the price was super reasonable. Thank you, Richard! We will be recommending Cooking for Friends to everyone! read more

On May 20, I contacted Richard Poncini, owner of Cooking For Friends, I was planning a birthday party on June 21, 2014. He soon messaged me back, that he was NOT booked, I was so excited, seeing his parties on Facebook, and around town, and pictures of these fabulous feasts he claimed to put on. Communicating with Richard was bad, he never returned messages until I finally wrote him that he must no longer be interested and I'd look elsewhere, he messaged, he WAS interested and we set up the date for Richard to come to my home which he did and we discussed set up etc, he suggested a lobster bake, and showed me pictures of the fabulous pans with lobster, clams, mussels, corn and potatoes, display was what sold me. He quoted $60.00 per person (I was having 18-20 people). He said he would be at my home to set up sometime Fri afternoon before the party. He sent me a quote which was $55.pp ( I would supply all plates silverware) I agreed. Money is NOT the complaint. By 5, the day before party, he had not arrived so I sent him a message, no response. I went to the store for last minute items and while at the store I decided I better call him 6PM.......he answered but he had no idea who I was or what he was doing for me. He had NOT scheduled my party.....talk about PANIC.....ok I have 18 people coming, all I have done is brag about this fabulous Lobster Bake and display. Every year we have 1 big party for a birthday, or anniversary, same group of local friends, and we always have a caterer so I do not have to work. I have used the same 4-5 caterers or personal chefs for 15 years, and there have been glitches but nothing like this. In fact 1 guest was the former owner of a catering company we used several times. Anyway he said he could do it, I had no choice but to put my faith in Richard. A couple of hours later he shows up, sets up the huge pots, tells me HE will NOT be at my party, his Brother, Paul would be working it, he had booked another event. Paul, was so sweet, and we all enjoyed talking with him. Paul tired his best but he was totally overwhelmed.....i did not get to enjoy my party.....because I had to help, EXACTLY why I did not cook the food myself! There was absolutely nothing special about this meal, no display, as we had discussed, the food was pretty bad. The only thing everyone ate was the corn, it was delicious, lobster was overcooked, and bands left on claws,garlic bread was SO FULL of jarred garlic NO ONE ate it. Paul gave me 2 lbs of butter to melt so I could fill the mini burners, Paul had me melt a lb for potatoes when I brought it out to him he said I could add some Old Bay and pour over potatoes IF I wanted. Again, he was very nice and tried so hard and I didn't have the heart to complain to him. I paid the amount owed and gave him a gratuity, I saw he was packing up but suddenly he was gone. He left a portfolio of their catered events and we started looking at it, we were all disappointed seeing what we missed, I was embarrassed. I am not cheap at all, and wanted something special for my friends....I got an obviously last minute throw something together lobster boil, not the event I planned on May 20th! UPDATE 6/23/14 Paul had said that Richard would be by Sunday 6/22 to pick up equipment, so I waited for him all day, finally texting him, as I wanted to talk to him. He never showed. Said he would be out Monday. I gathered everything and to my shock, there were the little meat forks everyone looked for, cheesecloth for lemons, oh well....and cleaned up as Yellow Jackets were all over the stuff. I left a letter and the draft of this review. He came by about 10 AM, it is now 4 and not a word.....very very disappointed :( read more

I first contacted Richard for a lunch event I was planning to host back in December 2018 at my home in HMB. He was courteous and prompt in his reply to my request for a quote. His prices are great. We'd set a date but it turned out it wouldn't work for my team so I had to cancel. He was very kind about it and I knew I would reach out to him again once I figured out a time that would work. Fast forward a couple of months, Richard came to my house to cook paella for my event for 20. He made 3 variations and all were DELICIOUS. All my guests made compliments on the food. It was an extra treat to watch Richard cook outside on my patio. My guests loved it too. He was prompt, brought all the necessary equipment and set up. I highly recommend Richard. read more

Richard Poncini and Cooking For Friends is an extraordinary experience when you want to create a special gathering for friends and family. He specializes in destination on-site cooking with feasts like Paella, Lobster-Clam Bake, BBO, Kalua Pig and Lamb Asado. Two colleagues and I hosted the Lobster-Clam bake for 12 which was outstanding. Twelve party participants exclaimed Richard's clam chowder as the best they had ever had. The lobster, clams, mussels, shrimp, corn, potatoes and bread were outstanding and it was a truly memorable experience. We are already planning the next event. Highest rating to Richard Porcini and Cooking For Friends. read more

Richard's cooking is as unique as any party you might want to host. His on-site catering of Hawaiian Luau pig roasts, lobster boils or on site paella party should be the center focus of the party. The execution and feast are top of the line. He is flexible and the food is always a treat to serve. I've had parties of 50 and 350 and he never flinches. I can't recommend him enough. read more

Such an awesome find! My husband found a different paella catering company that was very expensive and commented about how fun it would be to have a paella party. After much searching, I found Richard on Yelp and was so thankful I did. His prices were far more reasonable, we could invite more guests, he was in frequent communication up until the event, and so professional and easy to work with. When asking what I needed to set up for him, Richard said he just needed a space. He sent a very clear invoice a week in advance. He came on time (to the exact minute, on the dot), had all ingredients and equipment prepared, used and often changed his food prep gloves to keep everything clean (very appreciated during this nasty flu season), and right at the time requested presented our party with a massive pan of delicious paella. The seafood and meat for our paella mixta was not overcooked, as can happen when cooking large quantities like this, but was perfectly juicy. The chicken was tender, mussels and clams the right texture (not rubbery), and the rice was flavorful and delicious. My husband was completely surprised, our guests loved it, and Richard's paella made the party! read more

Richard does an amazing job. His pig roasts and paella are amazing but what I like best is how flexible he is. He will work on any size job and will do everything from supplying a dish to running the entire event. read more

For my husband's birthday, my son and I had decided to cook two paellas for 50. After a lot of research online, I couldn't find anyone who rented the equipment. I thought I would fired up two Webers and buy 2 18 inch paella pans. A week before the party, someone in Half Moon Bay who knew Richard told me he rented pans and burners for paella. He was great. He delivered two burners and my choice of LARGE pans and then collected them after the party. Now that I know he exists, I think I will have him do it next time! read more

I had been referred to Richard by a colleague. I reached out to him and he responded within an hour. We set up a time to meet 2 days later and he came to my house to discuss the arrangments I needed for 300 people. I was planning a funeral so had just 10 days to make this happen. He came as planned and had quite a few helpful suggestions. We agreed on the menu and service staff. He came the night before to set-up and even helped us with some of our set-up. He was prompt the next day and stayed until the bitter end. I wanted a nice presentation and boy does he deliver on that front. I received many compliments from those attending the reception, the Paella is amazing, delicious and love how he is preparing it before our eyes. I can't thank him enough for being so awesome to our family during a pretty difficult time. He gets 5 stars from us! read more

Holy cow, this was incredible. Richard catered our wedding rehearsal on the beach. Everything about it was amazing. Richard was incredibly helpful, responsive, and guided us per what food, how much, start time and end time, everything - he was a fantastic planner and its obvious he's done this many times before and is a complete professional. The food he cooked was OUTSTANDING, two types of paella and side dishes. Every guest was so pleased with the food and service and setting. Our guests were hanging around asking him all kinds of questions and telling him how great the food was. For us to see our guests that excited about the food, made us so happy and Richard and Cooking for Friends did that. Thank you Thank you and we'll be calling you again! read more

I have been using Richard with Cooking For Friends for over 10 years. He is accommodating, his food is fantastic and our guests are always wowed! One of our annual events takes place in the Redwoods where there is no power or hot water. He always pulls off the best meal service, and takes all the debris with him when he leaves. read more