Live carving is a private dining service where the centrepiece of the meal — chateaubriand, whole venison, or salt-baked salmon or sea bass — is cooked whole and carved in front of your guests, rather than plated out of sight in the kitchen. I am Giuseppe Manzoli, an Italian-trained private chef, and I cook it in private homes, self-catering houses, lodges, estates and wedding venues across Scotland.
At a Glance
- What it is: a whole joint or whole fish, cooked on site and carved at the table in front of guests.
- Dishes: chateaubriand, whole roast venison, salt-baked salmon, salt-baked sea bass, whole fish over charcoal.
- Guest numbers: no minimum and no maximum — the size of the joint is chosen to suit the room.
- Where: your own home, self-catering houses, holiday cottages, lodges, estates and wedding venues, anywhere in Scotland.
- Price: menus from £75 per person, VAT and travel included.
- Chef: Giuseppe Manzoli — 35+ years cooking professionally, trained in Italy, 220+ five-star Google reviews, cooked for the First Minister of Scotland in 2024.
Why Guests Remember It
Some of the best moments of an evening happen before anyone has eaten anything. A whole rib of beef carried in and carved at the table. A salt crust cracked open in front of everyone so the steam comes off the salmon inside. A whole sea bass, longer than the grill it was cooked on, brought in from the charcoal.
That is what a live carving dinner is. The cooking is the same standard as any of my menus — the difference is that the last minute of it happens in front of your guests instead of in the kitchen.
What I Carve and Cook Whole
Chateaubriand
The centre cut of the fillet, roasted whole and rested properly, then carved into thick slices at the table. Cooked to one temperature across the whole piece, which is the reason it is worth doing this way rather than as individual steaks.
Venison
Scottish venison, roasted whole and carved on the board. Lean, dark and seasonal — the most Scottish thing I cook, and one that guests coming from outside Scotland always remember.
Salt-baked salmon
The fish is packed in a crust of salt and baked whole. The crust holds every bit of moisture in, so the flesh steams in its own juices rather than drying out. Then it is cracked open at the table — and that is the moment people photograph. The salt does not make the fish salty; it makes it the most tender salmon most people have eaten.
Salt-baked sea bass
The same technique on whole sea bass. Cracked open, lifted off the bone and served in front of you.
Whole fish over charcoal
For bigger gatherings, a whole fish cooked outside over charcoal, stuffed with lemon and herbs, then carried in whole. Weather permitting — this is Scotland.
No Minimum, No Maximum
There is no minimum number of guests and no maximum. I have carved for a table of six and for a house full of people. A whole fillet of beef works just as well for eight as it does for forty — you simply choose the size of the piece to suit the room.
If you are a small group, the theatre is more intimate: everyone is close enough to watch. If you are a large one, it becomes the centrepiece everybody gathers round. Both work.
At Burgie House, Forres
Both the roast beef carved in the hallway and the whole sea bass cooked over charcoal came from the same booking at Burgie House near Forres, during a two-day private chef weekend. It was carried in from the grill and served whole. That is the kind of booking this suits best — a house full of people, a weekend rather than a single dinner, and an occasion that deserves something people will still be talking about on the drive home.
Where It Works
Anywhere I can cook. The carving happens wherever the guests are — a dining room, a hallway, a kitchen island, outside beside the grill.
- In your own home — a birthday or anniversary that deserves more than a restaurant.
- In a self-catering house, lodge or estate — a house party or a celebration weekend.
- At a wedding — carving as part of the wedding breakfast, or the dinner the night before.
- As part of a private dinner — one carved course inside a longer menu.
Talking It Through
Live carving is not a fixed package — it is a course, or two, built into whatever menu we design together. Tell me the occasion, roughly how many people and whether you want beef, venison or fish at the centre of it, and I will put a menu together around it. Get in touch here.
I have cooked professionally for 35+ years, trained in Italy, and in 2024 I cooked for the First Minister of Scotland. My work is backed by 220+ five-star Google reviews.
I also cook for companies — office lunches, board dinners and staff celebrations. See private chef for corporate events in Scotland.
Planning something outside? I also cook over charcoal and open fire — see cooking outdoors in Scotland — fire, grills and the wet-weather plan.