Born from a desire for better dining, Cozymeal reimagines how the world experiences food
Cozymeal is a San Francisco-based company that connects people with a wide variety of curated culinary experiences around the world. Through its platform, users can discover and book hands-on cooking classes, private chef dinners, guided food and drink tours, mixology sessions, wine tastings, team-building events, and other food-centric activities hosted by professional chefs, sommeliers, mixologists and local food experts. These experiences can take place in person across hundreds of cities or online, giving food lovers flexible ways to learn new skills, enjoy memorable meals, and explore global cuisines.
“The inspiration for Cozymeal came while I was living in San Francisco,” begins Sam Nasserian, CEO. “Although the city was a melting pot of different cultures and cuisines, I was often disappointed by restaurants. Many places offered only mediocre experiences or were so loud and noisy that there was a total lack of intimacy. You simply could not have a conversation without shouting at each other. I started asking myself why I could not just book a chef to come to my home and cook for me.
“Back then, finding a chef was incredibly difficult. You had to go to individual websites without knowing availability or pricing and it was a very lengthy process. The vision for Cozymeal was to change that. I wanted to create a platform where you could easily see all the chefs, check exactly when they were available, view the exact menu and book in just a few clicks.
“This is why we launched Cozymeal in 2014. Our goal was to enable enthusiasts to easily find high-quality gastronomic experiences with full transparency regarding reviews, pricing, the exact offering and availability,” Sam elaborates. “What continues to motivate me is the incredible variety of connections we facilitate. On one side, we are empowering a wide range of hosts from chefs and mixologists to food tour guides and sommeliers. On the other, we are serving consumers looking for memorable interactions. We see guests booking cooking classes for a romantic date night or a fun girls’ night out while the private chef services are the go-to choice for group celebrations and intimate date nights.
“We also see massive demand from companies booking team-building activities. They book cooking classes and food tours for in-person events while remote and hybrid teams rely on online experiences such as online cooking classes, virtual mixology and virtual wine tastings where even the ingredient kits are shipped directly to them. While every experience on Cozymeal is unique, we excel at curating vetted, high-quality options. Also, we provide a venue for the cooking classes, if needed.”
Facilitating food adventures
Cozymeal’s primary differentiation lies in two main areas: being the market pioneer and maintaining an unwavering commitment to quality. “We were the first company to truly simplify the process of finding and booking high-quality culinary experiences,” Sam enthuses. “Before us, no one offered a platform where you could easily visit a site, view real-time availability, check exact menus, see prices and reviews, and book a chef.
“Second, we place a massive emphasis on quality. While we have thousands of unique experiences on Cozymeal, the common denominator is that they are all high-quality. Whether a customer books in Tokyo, Los Angeles, San Francisco, or New York, they can rely on a consistently premium experience. Lastly, it’s our sheer scale: we have 50,000-plus culinary experiences in 400-plus cities worldwide and are growing at a rapid pace.”
In addition, Cozymeal offers related products and content geared toward gourmets, including a selection of chef-endorsed cookware and an online magazine with recipes and kitchen tips. “We view innovation through the lens of the full culinary lifecycle. It is not just about booking a class; it is about the entire ecosystem,” Sam continues. “This approach led to the launch of the Cozymeal Shop where guests can buy the top-tier cookware and tools recommended by chefs.
“For hosts, we are constantly innovating our backend technology to make running their business easier by automating scheduling, payments and marketing so they can focus on cooking. For guests, we are investing in seamless booking flows and hyper-localization to ensure that a user in Tokyo gets an experience as smooth and culturally relevant as a user in New York.”
Sam’s primary focus as a leader is empowerment. Just as the company’s platform empowers customers to find amazing food adventures and empowers chefs to make a good living, he believes it is crucial to empower employees as well.
“We prioritize giving our team members real responsibilities and a strong sense of ownership over their work,” he adds. “This approach has resulted in excellent retention, with many team members having been with the company for four to ten years, which is great for a company that is a little over 11 years old. We also operate in a naturally engaging industry. Who doesn’t love great food, wine, cocktails, and global cuisine? It is a fun space to work in, and because everyone can connect with the joy of food, our team is genuinely passionate about helping customers find the best culinary experiences worldwide.”
Scaling with soul
Heading into 2026, Sam is focused on continuing the company’s global expansion, to add new locations and offers to the portfolio. “Simultaneously, we are prioritizing our API partnerships. We have built an API that enables any company to get instant access to high-quality culinary experiences that they can offer to their own customers. We are currently in conversations with several travel companies interested in offering private chef services, cooking classes or food tours to guests staying in their properties. Imagine staying at a rental property and having a chef come in to make breakfast or even having the fridge filled before you arrive. That is the level of integration we are enabling. We have already entered partnerships with companies like Furnished Quarters, and we plan to bring many other partners in this area on board in the coming year.
“Scale without soul is a failure in our industry,” Sam concludes. “As we expand into additional locations, we don’t just airdrop into a new market. We start by identifying the local culinary leaders, the chefs who define that city’s taste. We treat our local communities as micro-ecosystems. We have dedicated team members who understand the nuances of the local food scene, ensuring that a pasta-making class in Rome, for example, feels distinct from one in San Francisco. Our global reach is supported by a strategy that remains deeply, intentionally local.”