At a recent dinner, I sat across from a friend, smiling as a tiny orange-and-black butterfly landed on my empty plate. Just inches away, a small figure in chef whites and red boots strolled out of a greenhouse with a rake perched over his shoulder. He then proceeded to work a patch of dirt, plant some seeds, and grow a bounty of vegetables, which he deposited on my plate in leafy bunches. 

Well, sort of. The scene playing out on the table in front of me was not real—at least not in the sense that a four-inch-tall human was preparing my dinner—but part of the Le Petit Chef dinner experience, which opened at Seattle’s Kimpton Palladian Hotel in October. An immersive, animated dinner show that uses 3D mapping technology to project images of the tiny chef and his adventures throughout a multi-course meal, Le Petit Chef offers dinner and a show in a delightful format perfect for a tech-forward city. 

“Seattle has such a vibrant culinary and cultural scene, and we couldn’t imagine a better city to introduce this experience to,” says Christian Bagaric, managing Director for 2Spicy Entertainment, the global company behind Le Petit Chef. “The Kimpton Palladian Hotel provides the perfect backdrop for this mix of storytelling, technology, and fine dining.”

Before each course, a lively animation accompanies the “preparation” of the dish. Here, le petit chef battles an octopus to put together a seafood stew.

Photo courtesy of Le Petit Chef

The 90-minute, multi-course follows “the world’s smallest chef” as he undertakes adventures (with a few mishaps along the way), like camping in a forest and cooking a chicken over an open spit, going up against an octopus while at sea, and skiing out of a snowy igloo. The scene changes accompany each new course and match the food that comes out on your plate. (While there are vegetarian and kids’ options available, the visuals remain the same for all guests and are based on the premium menu.) The actual man behind the meal is the Palladian’s executive chef, Gabriel Quintero, who puts his spin on some of the dishes with bold spices and global flavors like harissa, shiro vinaigrette, and smoked paprika. 

On the night we attended, they were presenting the original Le Petit Chef production, which was created in 2015 by the Belgian arts collective Skullmapping. I had the vegetarian menu (burrata salad, butternut squash bisque, sweet potato risotto, fried mushrooms, and ice cream for dessert), and my friend had the premium, which had coconut seafood stew instead of the bisque, harissa chicken instead of the risotto, and a New York steak as the main. The meal is not cheap (the classic menu starts at $165 per person without the wine pairing), but the portions are very generous, and the experience is unlike anything I’ve done in Seattle before (it reminds me a bit of something you’d see at one of the TeamLab art museums in Tokyo). 

A vibrant forest scene signals a forthcoming harissa chicken dish.

Photo courtesy of Le Petit Chef

As an adult, I was charmed by the pint-sized culinary maestro, and I couldn’t stop smiling with every new scene, so I can only imagine the reaction from children. For those looking for a not-so-traditional holiday outing, this might be your answer to bring a little surprise and delight to the season—no Santas required. 

Le Petit Chef will be at the Palladian through 2026, with different menus and accompanying storylines throughout the year.