Last updated: 7 August 2026
Every kitchen on Secret Kitchens is an independent business and the seller of everything it sells. Secret Kitchens hosts the kitchen's page but never holds your money — even card payments go straight to the kitchen's own Stripe account. That means refunds and cancellations are always handled directly between you and the kitchen. This page explains how that generally works.
1. Cancelling an order
Food on this site is made to order — the kitchen buys ingredients and starts cooking for you specifically. If you need to cancel, contact the kitchen as early as you can, using the contact details on its page.
- If the kitchen hasn't started preparing your order or buying ingredients for it, most kitchens will happily cancel and refund in full.
- The closer to your pickup or delivery time you cancel, the more likely the kitchen has already spent money and time on your order — the kitchen may reasonably keep some or all of your payment to cover what it can't recover.
- Some kitchens set their own cut-off times for changes and cancellations in their ordering notes — check the kitchen's page.
2. Something wrong with your order
If your order is wrong, missing items, spoiled, unsafe, or seriously not as described, tell the kitchen as soon as possible — ideally the same day, and within 24 hours. Photos help. With food, acting quickly matters: it's perishable, and the kitchen can only put things right if it knows promptly.
Where there's a genuine problem with the food, the kitchen should offer a remedy — a replacement, a fix for the order (for example, the missing item), or a refund, depending on how serious the problem is. Under the Australian Consumer Law, if food isn't safe to eat, isn't of acceptable quality, or doesn't match its description, you're entitled to a remedy from the seller — the kitchen — and for a major failure you can choose a refund or replacement. Telling the kitchen within 24 hours isn't a legal deadline and doesn't limit those rights — it just gives the kitchen the best chance to fix things quickly.
3. Change of mind
Kitchens aren't required to refund you for a change of mind — for example, ordering too much, no longer wanting it, or not liking a dish that was made correctly and as described. Because the food is perishable and made specifically for you, change-of-mind refunds are entirely at each kitchen's discretion. Ask the kitchen — some will help where they can, especially with plenty of notice.
4. How refunds are paid
- If you paid by card on the kitchen's page: the kitchen issues your refund through its own Stripe account, back to the card you paid with. Refunds usually appear on your statement within 5–10 business days of the kitchen processing them.
- If you paid the kitchen directly (cash, bank transfer, PayID or similar): the kitchen refunds you the same way, arranged directly with you.
- Secret Kitchens can't issue refunds on a kitchen's behalf — we never hold your money, so there's nothing on our side to refund from.
5. Your Australian Consumer Law rights
Nothing on this page limits your rights under the Australian Consumer Law.
Food sold to you comes with consumer guarantees that can't be excluded — including that it's safe, of acceptable quality, and matches its description. If those guarantees aren't met, you're entitled to a remedy from the kitchen that sold it to you, regardless of anything above and regardless of any policy a kitchen states.
If you can't resolve a problem with a kitchen, you can contact the Office of Fair Trading in your state or territory. You're also welcome to tell us at info@secret-kitchens.com — we can't issue refunds on a kitchen's behalf, but we take complaints about kitchens on our site seriously.