Speculation on new White House Chef .........

[Stinky The Clown]

.... lots of people in the media are saying Chicago's Rick Bayliss is a favorite of the Obamas and may get the invitation.

I dunno. He's a rock star chef who may have forgotten already how to run an actual high volume kitchen. He's also pretty narrowly focused in his culinary outlook. I think his stuff is great for what it is, but not all that wide.

What say you?

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

1. One thing I'll bet: the

frickin' PB&Js are off the daily menu.

[Warpy]

2. Not with two kids in the White House

All the kiddie food will stay there. However, if Obama likes Bayliss, you can bet there will also be an adult menu this time.

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

3. I was talking about the adult lunch menu. n/t

[eleny]

8. And I predict that "wet food" makes a triumphant return

Whatever "wet food" means. I take it to be soups, stews and gravies.

[wakemeupwhenitsover]

9. I'd forgotten all about that.

I never figured out what the hell 'wet food' meant either.

[htuttle]

4. Has any White House ever had a celebrity chef?

Granted, the notion of 'celebrity chef' is probably kind of new to begin with (outside of professional chef circles), but I don't recall any WH chefs having widespread fame before they got the job.

I could easily be wrong, though...

[Stinky The Clown]

5. No, not really, although Walter Scheib was well known professionally

and became a rock star later.

[mtnester]

6. Alice Walters was a huge supporter, and is big on healthy and sustainable

eating.

Michelle has talked about eating more healthy if they were in the White House. Or also Art Smith (Art & Soul on Capitol Hill, a Chicagoan who was Oprah's personal chef)

So that is another possibility. It would also not surprise me at all for them to ask more than one person...I mean, why not? The expert on healthy working with one of the best Mexican chefs in this country? I would do it that way.

Any other rumors yet?

[Rabrrrrrr]

7. If it were me, I'd take Michael Symon. But I don't think celebrity chefs would go to the White House

They'd lose too much money.

[hippywife]

10. But sometimes

the prestige is enough, no?

[Rabrrrrrr]

11. If one already has a TV show and a couple restaurants,

I don't think cooking at the White House will bring much extra stuff, and would only interfere in doing the other stuff.

I think being White House chef is something more of the up-and-comer than the established dude.

[hippywife]

12. Aah! But...

how many of these celebrity chefs routinely cook for heads of state and other dignitaries?

[kestrel91316]

13. Maybe the existing WH chef would like to stay and be given the chance

to actually BE A CHEF.