President Obama is a gastronomic adventurer and has a personal relationship with his chefs, Top Toque says...
President Obama is a very "adventurous" eater who often interacts with his White House chefs, Executive Chef Cristeta Comerford said from Moscow on Saturday. Comerford is attending the annual weeklong summit of the Club des Chefs des Chefs, the elite fraternity of chefs who cook for Heads of State and Royal Families. She is the only woman chef in the superstar collective, and traveled to Beijing and Hong Kong for the group's meeting last summer. (Above: Comerford speaking to reporters in Moscow)"He's...very like what I say very amicable, and so if he likes a dish or anything like that he would say like: Whoa, you know, that's a great dish, let's do that one again," Comerford told AFP about President Obama, describing him as "very open to food, very adventurous."
"He's very what I would say kind of like warm, a loving person," Comerford added.
A 16-year White House veteran, Comerford has been the President's Executive Chef since the start of his Administration, and was previously EC for President George W. Bush. August marks Comerford's sixth anniversary as Top Toque.
Club des Chefs des Chefs was founded in 1977 by Gilles Bragard to give the world's culinary elite a professional association to exchange ideas and techniques gleaned from years of working under the most challenging circumstances possible. During their annual meetings, the chefs cook for each other, socialize, and spotlight the cuisine of the host country. During a meeting with reporters in Moscow, Comerford and other chefs described their experience with their bosses. (Above: Comerford is to the right of the center of this group photo of the Club, taken at last year's summit)Kremlin chef has never had a conversation with Medvedev...
Comerford's relationship with President Obama is very different than that of Jerome Rigaud, the French chef who has cooked for Russian Federation President Dmitri Medvedev for the last three years at the Kremlin. Rigaud said he often sees Medvedev but they have never had a personal conversation.
"I have met him numerous times, but I haven't had the chance to talk to him," Rigaud told AFP.
President Obama famously escorted Medvedev to Ray's Hell Burger in Arlington, Virginia during the Russian leader's visit to the White House in June of 2010.
Chef Mark Flanagan, who cooks for the British Royal Family at Buckingham Palace, said that Her Royal Majesty Queen Elizabeth II prefers local ingredients, and this was on full display when she honored President Obama with a State Banquet in May of 2011.
"She's a fan of local and seasonal food. It changes throughout the year. We are very fortunate in the UK because we have fantastic products -- really!" Flanagan said about The Queen. He called cooking for the Royal Wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge a "career highlight."
Comerford, Flanagan, and Rigaud speak about their bosses in this AFP video:
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