Most couples I cook for don't actually hate cooking. They hate the 6:30pm decision.

Work ends. Someone's hungry. The fridge has half a lemon, leftover rice, and a chicken breast you meant to use on Tuesday. Takeout wins, again. Not because you're lazy. Because deciding is the work, and you're already spent.

A personal chef doesn't magically give you more time. It removes the decision. Menu's set. Groceries are in. Food is in your containers, in your fridge, labeled for the night you said you'd eat it.

If you still want to cook on Sundays, cook on Sundays. The point of a retainer is the weeknights that keep beating you.

Three things that actually change the week:

• A menu before Sunday, not at 6:28pm on Wednesday

• Food that reheats without tasting like leftover sadness

• A fridge you can open without negotiating with yourself

That's the job.