White House Chef

White House Chef: Eleven Years, Two Presidents, One Kitchen, by Walter Scheib and Andrew Friedman. (John Wiley & Sons, c2007. ISBN: 0471798428)

Walter Scheib served as the White House Chef during both terms of the Clinton administration and the first term of the Bush administration. His book is filled with inside stories of dinners, both formal and family. It's an informative and interesting look at the White House from an unusual point of view.

With so much negative campaigning going on right now, it's a pleasure to hear from someone who is awed by his opportunity to work in the White House. His accounts of First Families, state dinners, and foreign leaders are always respectful. His passion for his mission -- serving restaurant quality meals that feature the best of American cuisine -- is always apparent.

The author and his staff regularly created dinners, buffets, and picnics for hundreds -- even thousands -- of people on a daily basis. It was almost exhausting just to read about the Millenial New Year's Eve events, in which he oversaw a formal dinner, a buffet dinner, a reception, and a breakfast buffet, feeding about 1,600 people over the course of less than 12 hours.

At-home chefs will be pleased to know that there are recipes throughout the book, taken from menus served during Scheib's tenure at the White House.

Lecture Alert! Chef Scheib speaks on Thursday, October 2, at 7 p.m. in the Scranton Cultural Center as part of the Lackawanna County Library Lecture Series. Tickets are free with a library card! Tickets are available at all Lackawanna County libraries and at the Scranton Cultural Center Box Office.