How Charlotte Dines Behind Closed Doors, According to Three Private Chefs
From left: Susanne Dillingham of The Tiny Chef, Will Williams of Seasoned Provisions, and Joanna Adduci Reed of The Garden Party CLT.
Charlotte’s culinary scene has continued to evolve, with promising new restaurants and even a recent turn in the spotlight on Bravo’s Top Chef. Lately, though, I’ve found myself more intrigued by another side of that scene. It’s one where exquisite meals are prepared in the homes of some of the city’s most prominent residents. I’m talking, of course, about Charlotte’s private chefs.
To satisfy that craving, if you will, I reached out to three of them, Susanne Dillingham of The Tiny Chef, Will Williams of Seasoned Provisions, and Joanna Adduci Reed of The Garden Party CLT. I wanted to hear what goes into creating these intimate dinners and what the chefs have learned about the way Charlotte entertains at home.
On the Host’s Terms
A restaurant sets the menu, the setting, and much of the evening’s pace. At home, the host has more room to decide what dinner will feel like.
“There’s no reservation time, no waiting for a table, no worrying about who is driving home, and no feeling like you need to give the table back,” Susanne said. Guests might linger over wine, wander into the kitchen, or get caught up in a conversation between courses.
Will said that flexibility is one reason clients invite a chef into their homes. Courses can be spaced around the gathering, rather than the other way around. Joanna sees another advantage in the control clients have over their surroundings. They choose the music, the timeline, and who joins them at the table. “Going out is about public social energy; hosting at home with a private chef is about high-comfort, unhurried intimacy,” she said.
For the high-profile clients and professional athletes Joanna works with, that control also provides privacy. They can have a carefully planned dinner without the attention of a public setting.
Photo: The Garden Party CLT.
Personal Down to the Menu
The chefs can tailor far more than a choice of entrée. Susanne asks about the foods, wines, and memories that matter to her clients, whether that means a honeymoon in Tuscany, a grandmother’s cooking, or the restaurant where a couple had their first date.
“When you go to a restaurant, you’re entering the restaurant’s world,” she said. “With private dining, we’re entering yours.”
Will has built menus around favorite ingredients, cultural backgrounds, and trips clients want to remember. Joanna has designed dinners around wines from a client’s own cellar, turning bottles they’ve collected into part of the evening’s story. In each case, the meal reflects the people gathering for it.
Photo: Seasoned Provisions
For Susanne, those connections between food and memory became part of the inspiration for her forthcoming book, Secret Ingredients of Life. After years of cooking in people’s homes, she said the meals that stay with us are often tied to much more than what was on the plate.
Polished Without Feeling Formal
Milestone birthdays, anniversaries, and holiday celebrations remain part of the chefs’ work. They’re also preparing dinners for clients who simply want to spend an evening with friends.
Joanna has seen more small “just because” gatherings, sometimes six to ten friends catching up over dinner and wine on a Thursday night. Susanne said some of her favorite dinners bring six or eight people together around a table, with no need to make the occasion feel formal.
That doesn’t mean the details disappear. Will described evenings that start with cocktails and passed hors d’oeuvres in the kitchen before guests sit down to a plated dinner. “The new version of luxury entertaining can be very polished without feeling stiff,” he said.
Where the Luxury Shows Up
At the elaborate end of the spectrum, Joanna has arranged dinners with custom tablescapes, specially sourced wine pairings, live acoustic music, and printed linen menus. Susanne has planned events involving multiple chefs, service staff, rentals, florals, and days of preparation. Will has created multi-course dinners that demand careful timing in a kitchen he may be using for the first time.
Photo: The Tiny Chef
Yet all three cautioned against measuring luxury by the price of an ingredient or the scale of an event. Handmade pasta prepared for six can feel just as special as a large production. So can a guest’s dietary restriction being handled without making their plate look like an afterthought.
“Sometimes luxury is a warm plate,” Will said. “It’s having your wine poured before you realize your glass is empty.”
Joanna pointed to “perfectly timed course transitions without ever interrupting a conversation,” along with hand-polished glassware and a kitchen left cleaner than her team found it. Susanne described remembering a wine a client loved at a previous dinner. These details take planning, but they allow the gathering to continue without the host having to manage it.
Their advice for anyone hosting at home is strikingly similar. Susanne recommends making one or two things well, opening the wine before guests arrive, and sitting down with everyone else. Joanna suggests setting the mood with warm lighting and good music, then letting the conversation take priority. “The energy of a relaxed host sets the temperature for the entire room,” she said. Will sums it up simply. “The greatest luxury a host can offer is their presence.”
