At a glance
- Chef: Giuseppe Manzoli, Italian private chef based in Scotland.
- Venue: Biallid House, Newtonmore, Inverness-shire, in the Cairngorms National Park.
- The occasion: a hen weekend for thirteen, with canapes and a seated dinner cooked on site.
- Best for: hen parties, group weekends and celebrations in self-catering Highland houses.
- A speciality: menus that quietly handle vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free and other needs across the whole group.
- Pricing: from £75 to £180 per person for private dinners; group events priced per event.
- Bookings: tailored quote within 24 hours. Phone 07414 235 378 or email [email protected].
I’m Giuseppe Manzoli, an Italian private chef based in Scotland. In June 2026 I cooked a hen-party dinner at Biallid House in Newtonmore, a large exclusive-use house in the Cairngorms National Park, for a group of thirteen on a weekend away.
I bring the ingredients, the equipment and the service, and I leave the kitchen exactly as I found it. The weekend belongs to the group, not to the cooking.
Why Biallid House suits a private chef
Biallid House is a seven-bedroom Highland house that sleeps up to fifteen, set in its own grounds with a long gated drive and mountain views from every room, a short walk from Newtonmore village. The dining table is laid for proper banquets, which is exactly what a private chef wants: the whole party stays under one roof, and I can cook and serve a full meal in the house without anyone leaving the celebration. For a hen weekend, a milestone birthday or a family gathering, it is one of the most relaxed settings I cook in.
A hen weekend at Biallid House
For this booking, a hen weekend for the bride-to-be Celeste and her group of thirteen, everyone arrived in the afternoon and settled in, then I served canapes at seven and brought the table together for dinner at around quarter to eight. That gentle rhythm is what makes a catered weekend feel special: nobody is shopping, cooking or clearing, the evening simply unfolds, and the group gets to spend the time together.
Behind the scenes
Here is a short look behind the scenes of the weekend, from the prep to plating up at Biallid House.
A menu that works for the whole group
This is the part I am proudest of. A good hen party usually means a real mix of diets at one table, and the aim is always the same: every single person should feel looked after, not catered for as an afterthought.
For this group the menu ran almost entirely plant-forward. The canapes were all vegan: little tarts with roasted vegetables, bruschetta with basil and tomato, and cucumber with homemade hummus, followed by warm homemade focaccia. To start, a vegan aubergine parmigiana to share at the table. For mains I cooked to each guest: a chicken cacciatore for those who wanted it, handmade ricotta and spinach ravioli with grilled courgette for the vegetarians, and a courgette spaghetti pan-fried with homemade basil pesto for a fully vegan, no-onion plate. Dessert was a vegan panna cotta with berry sauce. Throughout, one guest was served completely gluten-free, from the canapes to the dessert.
None of that is a compromise. It is simply what cooking from scratch on site lets me do.
What I cook
The menus are built around your group, but the theme is Italian technique with Scottish produce, and I am as happy cooking a generous plant-based spread as a classic meat menu. Everything is plated to a fine-dining standard rather than served from trays, and vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free and any allergy needs are built into the menu from the start, not bolted on at the end.
Biallid House is one of many Scottish venues I cook at. If you have booked a self-catering house elsewhere, see private chef for self-catering houses and lodges, or read about private dining.
How a booking works
A booking starts with a call or message. We talk through your dates, the number of guests and any dietary needs, and within 48 hours I send a proposed menu and a per-head price. On the day I arrive ahead of service, cook in the house kitchen, plate and serve each course, and clean down before I leave.
What it costs
Private dinners run from £75 to £180 per person depending on the number of courses, the ingredients and the headcount. Hen weekends and group stays are priced per event once the menu is agreed, with a tailored quote within 24 hours of your enquiry. The price covers menu design, ingredient sourcing, cooking, plating, service and the full clean-down.
Frequently asked questions
Can you cater a hen party with lots of different dietary needs?
Yes, and it is one of the things I am known for. Vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, no-onion, allergies, I build the menu so everyone at the table is properly looked after, with no one feeling like an afterthought.
Can you cook a fully vegan or vegetarian menu?
Absolutely. A plant-based menu cooked from scratch can be every bit as generous and special as a meat one, as this Biallid House hen weekend showed.
Do you cook in the house’s own kitchen?
Yes. Self-catering houses like Biallid House are ideal for a private chef. I cook in the kitchen of whichever house you have booked, and if anything specific is missing I bring it.
How far in advance should I book?
For weekend hen parties and peak-season group stays, the earlier the better, ideally a few months ahead. Off-season private dinners can often be arranged at shorter notice.
Get in touch
If you are planning a hen weekend, a group stay or a celebration at Biallid House, or anywhere in Newtonmore and the Cairngorms, I would love to hear about it. Phone 07414 235 378, email [email protected], or use the booking form on the Check Availability page.
I’ve been cooking professionally for 35+ years, trained in Italy, with 220+ five-star Google reviews from private dining across Scotland. Check your date.
This is one of many hen-do dinners I cook each year — see private chef hen parties in Scotland for menus and pricing.