I cooked one dinner this September for a golf incentive trip — sixteen senior sales managers from an American company, in Scotland for a week of golf and staying at Carlogie House near Carnoustie. I’m Giuseppe Manzoli, an Italian-trained private chef, and Susan, who owns Carlogie House, brought me in for their one big night of the stay.
They’d been sent over as a reward trip — top-performing sales managers, most in their fifties, many playing golf in Scotland for the first time, based a few miles from Carnoustie’s Open Championship links. Sixteen of them stayed in the house for a full week, but I was booked for just the one dinner, so everything had to come together in a single evening.
I opened with aubergine parmigiana — sliced, fried and layered with tomato and cheese, then baked until it set. It’s one of the dishes I turn to most for group bookings like this one: it holds well, feeds a crowd easily, and gives the evening an Italian start before the main courses arrive.
For the main event I worked with veal shanks for a proper osso buco — cross-cut and bone-in, so the marrow renders into the sauce as it slow-cooks. Carlogie House’s own kitchen gave me the space to prep everything ahead and finish it low and slow through the afternoon.
Alongside it, a whole leg of lamb, barbecued and then slow-cooked until it pulled apart easily — the kind of centrepiece that suits a group this size, carved rather than plated individually.
By early evening I had a full plating station running in the kitchen, working through each course as the group came through for dinner.
I finished the night with a homemade tiramisu, made from scratch rather than assembled from anything shop-bought — which is how I do dessert for every private dinner I cook.
It’s exactly the kind of booking Carlogie House suits well — an exclusive-use house with its own proper kitchen, big enough for a group of sixteen to stay all week and still have one night where everyone sits down to a proper dinner together. I’ve cooked at Carlogie House for other groups too; you can read more about what I do there generally on my Carlogie House page.
In short: I cooked a one-night dinner for sixteen American sales managers on a golf incentive trip at Carlogie House, Angus — aubergine parmigiana, slow-cooked osso buco, a whole barbecued leg of lamb and homemade tiramisu, all from the house’s own kitchen.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you cook for corporate golf trips and incentive groups?
Yes. Groups staying at self-catering houses near golf courses are one of the bookings I cook for most often — frequently for one dinner during a longer stay, as with this group at Carlogie House.
Can you cook for a large group in one evening?
Yes. Sixteen guests and several courses is a typical size for me — Carlogie House’s own kitchen gave me everything I needed to prep, cook and plate for the whole group in a single evening.
Do you cook in the house’s own kitchen or bring your own equipment?
I use the house’s own kitchen wherever it’s well equipped, which Carlogie House is. I bring in anything extra I need myself.
I’ve been cooking professionally for 35+ years, with 220+ five-star Google reviews from clients across Scotland. If you’re planning a group stay or a golf trip and want a proper dinner cooked for you, get in touch and check a date.