Cristeta Comerford To Remain White House Chef (PHOTOS)

Today Michelle Obama announced that Cristeta Comerford will stay on as White House executive chef, putting to rest all the speculation surrounding the decision.

From the AP:

Cristeta Comerford took the job in 2005 and is the first woman and first minority to serve as executive chef.

"Cristeta Comerford brings such incredible talent to the White House operation and came very highly regarded from the Bush family," Michelle Obama said in a statement released by the transition team. "Also the mom of a young daughter, I appreciate our shared perspective on the importance of healthy eating and healthy families."

Comerford is a naturalized U.S. citizen from the Philippines who studied French cooking in Vienna, Austria, and specializes in ethnic and American cuisine

From The Washington Post:

She's come a long, long, long way, this former hotel "salad girl." Before she was hired as an assistant chef in the White House in 1995, before first lady Laura Bush promoted her to White House executive chef last week, Cristeta Comerford -- "Cris" to her neighbors and co-workers here in the Washington area, "Teta" to her large but tight-knit Filipino family in the Chicago suburb of Morton Grove -- was in charge of a salad bar.

"That's what I called her, 'salad girl.' She prepared Caesar salad, Cobb salad," says Juanito Pasia, Cristeta's older brother, trying not to laugh. It was Juanito who drove Teta -- then 23, newly arrived from the Philippines -- in his blue Ford van to and from work at a Sheraton Hotel near Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. "Can you believe it?" he asks, giving another hearty laugh. "Can you believe this is happening?".

PHOTOS:

In the White House kitchen:

Comerford presenting the holiday menu in 2005:

And in 2006...

And in 2007...

Comments

[prezchiz]

I'm a Filipina and a graduate of the University of the Philippines like Ms. Comerford so I'm very happy that she is still the White House executive chef.

I think she kept her job because she is good at it. Her primary responsibility is to make sure that the Obama family has healthy diet and prepare wonderful meals for White House occasions. Let's keep politics out of this and let her cook!

[ReesieKitty]

I think that this chef will be more than willing to embrace whatever 'green' policies as well as organics, local production, etc. the Obamas want to do. Most chefs these days are very supportive of those ideas. When she was under the Bush admin, she did what they wanted- now she'll have a new boss!

[tess jr]

This is an Obama family choice--
Pollan, Waters, could they or someone with their platform serve in the new administration in some other important capacity?
--and yes, GOOD FOR HER and immigrants who've worked their way to the top.

[iPolitics]

I've seen some of those menus. Interesting.

[Jo Manning]

With so many folks losing their jobs, how nice this woman is keeping hers! And maybe she'll get a chance to introduce a lot more interesting dishes now that the Bushes are about to go.

[marcelisa]

"she'll get a chance to introduce a lot more interesting dishes now that the Bushes are about to go."

I thought about that, too. Indonesian food (which the PE had as a child) has similarities with Filipino food. The White House menu might get spicier, more interesting.

[LeeVing]

The photo makes her look like The Flying Nun.

[munki]

A true understanding of food, creme de la creme mix of ethnic food to serve global leaders... as well as domestic... French food educated in Austria is an interesting combination... plus Asian ethnic food... why not all together! Yum

[littlebrowngirl]

I think it would have been a bold statement for Obama to hire a new chef just to highlight the change in administrations.

Although I do not agree with the choice, this lady is differant. She has worked her way up into this position and is diverse in terms of food and nationality. It looks like she is from the Chicago area so that proabably helped.

[entopticon]

I'm an Obama supporter, but there are going to be times when I disagree with him, and this is one of them. In my opinion, this was a gigantic blunder and a huge opportunity lost.

Obama should have listened to Alice Waters and the group of chefs and prominent foodies that offered him a new vision for the White house kitchen and gardens that would have been an enormously effective symbol to help establish a new greener, more sustainable, and healthier economy in America based on the farm to table movement.

Instead of pouring all of our money into the coffers of global megacorporations growing crops for processed simple carbohydrates, we could reinvigorate local economies across the nation and curb the health epidemic caused by artificially cheap processed foods. If we do not take drastic steps to create a new green economy, there will be no world left to save.

Food security is national security. I am saddened by the level of ignorance on this topic. I beg you to read Michael Pollan's brilliant open letter to Obama on the subject:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/magazine/12policy-t.html?ref=magazine

Either chef Comerford needs to embrace this idea in full and take drastic measures to institute Waters', Polann's et al vision, or she needs to be replaced immediately. The stakes are far too high to waste this opportunity.

[ltva]

The President-elect is keeping the Bush's chef what's the big deal? Does everything have to be so political? Look at it this way by him keeping her on as chef it will be one less person in the unemployment line.

[entopticon]

ltva, yes, politics has to be political. And yes, we are at a crossroads where if we don't take drastic measures to reestablish a greener, more sustainable economy, there will be no US to save. The farm to table movement is at the core of the greener economy, and Michael Pollan's vision for the White House Kitchen and grounds would be a huge step in the right direction.

Read the article that I posted and you will understand just what a big deal this really is.

You are completely naive if you think Comerford will be on an unemployment line if she is fired. You are also completely naive if you don't understand the extreme importance of the green collar economy as our last and only hope for digging ourselves out of the catastrophic crisis that we are currently facing.

[onedivasinger]

For some people, everything is political. The time we spend on this stuff is insane. There are 4 years in the first term. If they want to make a change they can. Next...

[gplain]

I don't see why that can't let the nice lady keep her job AND promote local, post-organic food. I think your post, while earnest, is a little breathless and alarmist.

Michael Pollan himself talks about the tendency for food activists to have an all-or-nothing attitude (e.g. Joe Salatin's attitude that we don't need cities like NY [omnivore's dilemma]), and I think you're displaying a little of that same attitude here.

My point is, lots of people are losing their jobs at the moment. What kind of message would it send for them to just fire this cook -- someone who has worked her way up from such humble beginnings -- just so they could replace her with someone who you consider 'perfect' for the job.

They'd risk tainting a very important thing (local food) as 'elitist'. I say, let her keep the job, and get to work building some gardens in the white house. While they're at it, only buy from local farms, etc. It sends the signal that transitioning to local food can be painless (i.e, you don't need to fire the chef).

[Rivermont]

Your head is so far up your butt you can chew your food twice.

[yearlin]

that red suit looks good on Lady Bush

[tlgeiger62]

I was so pleased to hear that Cris would be staying on with the Obamas. I remember hearing about her story and thought it was such a wonderful thing that she would stay on as head chef. Best wishes to one and all.

[Seattlelite]

As first ladies go Laura was a good one.

[Melissa]

I'm glad she is staying. She is living the American Dream and I am happy for her!

[jmaycock]

Laura is staying??

[oc obama]

I think the chef should go. She having been in the Bush whitehouse and given her job by Laura Bush means only one thing, that she is totally loyal to George Bush as most of his White House was. I can see her passing information onto the Rethuglicans and the faithful Bush folks still left in the WH. The problem Obama will soon have is that he has no one loyal to him. In his cabinet or otherwise. Bill Clinton has his loyalist (unforutnately most are in waiting in the Obama cabinet). Like this chef, they are waiting to get everything they can on Obama and make sure the person(s) they are loyal to knows about it. Kick her off the island!

[whatsthatsound]

Sorry, I can't tell if you're being serious or not.

[D Right One]

You guys can't be serious. This young lady probably could care less about the politics of Bush or Obama. She seems to care more about her cooking and making sure it's right. I'm glad she's staying on. OB is picking the best crew for him and his plan of action for the next four years. Everybody get out of the way like we did for evreybody else. Gotta give this administration time and breathing room to have a go at it.

[kotipup]

Off topic, but there was a guy on NPR awhile back who was advocating for a garden at the White House. Extra produce could be used to stock local food banks. How nice it would be for them to have an organic garden to provide seasonal, fresh ingredients to food and to encourage the rest of us to have gardens of our own, which would be good for both our health and our environment (No, I don't have a garden, but the guy I was listening to made me really *want* to try my hand at gardening, even though I can barely keep a house plant alive)

[yearlin]

a garden would be great

[HenryClay]

Poor Laura looks like the teacher in the TV commercial who urgently needs to go to the bathroom, but there's still 15 minutes to go before she can dismiss the class.