BRACEPrivate Chef · Des Moines

Italian tables · Live fire · Central Iowa

Private dinners, cooked by the chef.

Every dinner is cooked in your home by Chef Paul Forciniti, from the shopping to the last plate. A limited number of dates each month, across Des Moines and the surrounding towns.

brace (brah-cheh) — Italian for embers. From $150 per guest · Events from $1,500

Two experiences

Each menu is written for your table: the season, your guests, any allergies. Prices include ingredients, cooking, service by the chef and a clean kitchen at the end of the night.

The Italian Table

A seated dinner in courses. Pasta made by hand in your kitchen, regional Italian cooking, served at the table.

From
$185 per guest
Guests
8 minimum

The Fire

A live-fire dinner in the Buenos Aires tradition. Wood and charcoal, whole cuts cooked slowly, served family style around the grill.

From
$150 per guest
Guests
10 minimum

The Chef

Paul Forciniti

Italian by origin, trained in the kitchens of Buenos Aires. More than 25 years cooking across Buenos Aires, Paris, Barcelona, Emilia-Romagna, Mexico City and New York.

He owned La Reserva in Buenos Aires and ran the kitchen of Hotel Presidente InterContinental in Mexico City as Executive Chef. Today he advises luxury hotels on their restaurants, and cooks a small number of private dinners in central Iowa.

Honorary Member, Académie Culinaire de France and Vatel Club Mexico & Caribbean. Author of Your Food Is Not The Problem. paulforciniti.com

How it works

  1. 1

    Send the date

    Date, number of guests, town and the occasion. Allergies and preferences too.

  2. 2

    Receive the menu

    The chef writes a menu for your table, with the final price per guest.

  3. 3

    Hold the date

    A 30% deposit confirms the booking. The balance is due 72 hours before.

  4. 4

    Sit down

    The chef arrives with everything, cooks, serves and leaves the kitchen clean.

Included

Ingredients, cooking on site, service by the chef, kitchen cleanup.

Quoted separately

Wine pairing, front-of-house staff for larger groups, rentals, travel outside the metro.

Where

Des Moines, West Des Moines, Waukee, Clive, Urbandale, Johnston, Ankeny. Ames and beyond on request.

Check a date

Events start at $1,500. December dates are limited.

Prefer to talk first? Book a 15-minute call.

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15 minutes with the chef

A short phone call to talk through your date, your guests and the experience. Pick a time; you confirm your details on the next screen.

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