Chef-to-Consumer Marketplace Enables Houston Locals to Easily Order Fresh, Healthy Dinners from Culinary Experts

Shef, the online marketplace connecting people with local chefs, including James Beard Award winners and Michelin-trained talent, who prepare and deliver fresh, homemade meals, today launched its Weekly Shef Service in Houston. Consumers in the Houston area can now select between 1,351 diverse dishes from 60 different cuisines on the Shef platform. The service offers locals a seamless, recurring weekly meal solution from personal chefs, combining the warmth and wholesome nutrition of home cooking with the ease of delivery, at a price that beats takeout.

Houston becomes the 10th market where Shef offers its recurring subscription services, joining Dallas, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, Boston, Austin and Washington, D.C. Shef has raised more than $100 million in funding to date, with thousands of fully vetted, trusted chefs serving more than 180,000 families nationwide.

"Houston is a city that knows good food, but between long commutes and busy schedules, home-cooked meals are often the first thing to fall off the plate," said Joey Grassia, Shef co-founder and CEO. "The Weekly Shef Service now makes it effortless for Houstonians to schedule a real, homemade dinner on the table—at a price that's easier on the wallet than ordering takeout, and without any of the planning, shopping, or cleanup that comes with cooking for yourself. Shef makes it simple to choose from thousands of diverse, authentic meals that arrive at your door, ready to eat. Whether you’re a hectic family of five or a single professional, you no longer have to settle for a mediocre dinner, even on the busiest of weeknights."

Through Shef, customers can browse dishes by cuisine, discover the personal stories behind each chef, and schedule convenient weekly deliveries for globally inspired, small-batch meals made with care. Houston residents now have direct access to regional specialties and comfort food from around the world, often prepared by cooks who grew up making these authentic dishes. Popular dishes include a "meme bowl", which is a Parmesan-coated chicken breast sliced over homemade mashed potatoes, smothered in trap house cream sauce, topped with crawfish and shrimp, shrimp curry, and other savory dinners.

For professional chefs, Shef offers a powerful opportunity to turn culinary talent into a rewarding business. “Shefs” set their own menus, prices, and schedules, giving them the flexibility to build a food business on their own terms while receiving support from Shef in areas like food safety certification, pricing guidance, and marketing. Cooks on Shef have earned tens of millions of dollars in net income to support their families, with top earners generating nearly a million dollars in total revenue.

"On one side of the marketplace, Shef helps busy people who are short on time and still want a real, homemade meal, but just as importantly it enables dedicated chefs to monetize their talent," said Grassia. "We're handing chefs a steady, lucrative business without the headaches that are usually associated - including delivery logistics, marketing, and customer service. Just the chance to cook what they love and build a sustainable income."

About Shef
Shef is redefining mealtime by connecting families with their own shared personal chef. The platform curates the best local culinary talent to deliver fresh, homemade meals — combining the warmth of home cooking with the ease of delivery, all at a price that beats takeout.

Founded by Joey Grassia and Alvin Salehi, sons of immigrants who understand the power of food to build community and create opportunity, Shef empowers talented local culinary entrepreneurs while offering a convenient dining solution for busy families. Inspired by their mothers' dedication to nourishing their families through food, they built a platform that enables local chefs to earn a meaningful income by doing the same for their communities.

Today, Shef operates in cities across the U.S., including New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, Dallas, Austin, Boston, Dallas, Washington, D.C., and Houston. Visit www.shef.com to discover your shared personal chef.

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