Return to Virginia Business - February 2002

What's cooking with Chef Blair


How would you like to come home after a busy day at the office to a freshly cooked meal?
Chef Blair Grossman
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Thanks to Appetite for Life, a personal chef service, busy professionals and families in the greater Richmond area can savor home-cooked meals in their own kitchens even if they are pressed for time or can't boil water. Owned and operated by Chef Blair Grossman, Appetite for Life customizes menus to suit the needs of everything from business affairs to nutritious family meals and romantic dinners for two.

Meal plans start at $14 per person per meal. Grossman consults with each client to assess food preferences, dietary requirements and menu options. He then selects fresh ingredients and does any necessary grocery shopping. He arrives at your home with his "mobile kitchen" and prepares your meal of choice. (Favorite dishes include pork cabbage dumplings and salmon lasagna with a creamy basil sauce.) He leaves no dirty pots and pans; the only sign that he was there is the aroma of delicious food.

Passionate about culinary arts and hospitality, Grossman enjoys helping people increase their appetite for life by giving them more time to spend on what matters most to them. "Especially in these uncertain times, everyone is reevaluating life and realizing the importance of things like family dinners," he says. "I hope to encourage people to spend more time together sharing meals."
Jim Conaway, president of Triad Capital Group, became a loyal client after hiring Grossman for a business function. "Not only was the food great, but it gave me the opportunity to spend time with my clients. I didn't have to worry about anything in the kitchen." He was so impressed that he hired Grossman to cater a New Year's Eve party and to create a nutritionally focused meal plan to prepare him for a triathlon.

Aside from meal planning and preparation, Grossman offers instructional dinner parties, where groups of four to six people can roll up their sleeves and join him in the kitchen. For more information on any of his services, visit www.chefblair.com.

- Elizabeth Thalhimer