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| Looking for a Trump Doctrine in the White House Kitchen | Looking for a Trump Doctrine in the White House Kitchen |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| Like farmers eyeing the sky for a welcome rain cloud, people have been peering through the White House fence at the organic kitchen garden, searching for signs of activity. | Like farmers eyeing the sky for a welcome rain cloud, people have been peering through the White House fence at the organic kitchen garden, searching for signs of activity. |
| During the Obama administration, the garden’s heirloom vegetables and stream of visiting chefs and schoolchildren became a stage set for Michelle Obama, who built her legacy on promoting good cooking, healthful eating and exercise. The 2,800-square-foot collection of raised beds became such a potent political symbol that after the fall election, protesters brandished signs demanding that the new administration keep its hands off their genitalia and the garden. | |
| To the great relief of chefs and other supporters of the garden, Melania Trump has announced that she will keep it going. But they are still waiting for more definitive signs of how the Trumps will feed themselves and their guests, and whether they will set — as previous administrations have — a culinary example for the nation. | To the great relief of chefs and other supporters of the garden, Melania Trump has announced that she will keep it going. But they are still waiting for more definitive signs of how the Trumps will feed themselves and their guests, and whether they will set — as previous administrations have — a culinary example for the nation. |
| By virtue of tradition and archaic gender roles, the complex work of managing food for the White House has fallen to the first lady. But Mrs. Trump has no plans to move to Washington until the summer and has said little publicly about what she expects or wants from the cooking and entertaining staff. | By virtue of tradition and archaic gender roles, the complex work of managing food for the White House has fallen to the first lady. But Mrs. Trump has no plans to move to Washington until the summer and has said little publicly about what she expects or wants from the cooking and entertaining staff. |
| “Without a hands-on first lady, they’re just pumping out food and seeing what the reaction is,” said Adrian Miller, a lawyer turned food writer who was a special assistant to President Bill Clinton and whose new book, “The President’s Kitchen Cabinet,” examines the role African-Americans have played in every White House kitchen. | “Without a hands-on first lady, they’re just pumping out food and seeing what the reaction is,” said Adrian Miller, a lawyer turned food writer who was a special assistant to President Bill Clinton and whose new book, “The President’s Kitchen Cabinet,” examines the role African-Americans have played in every White House kitchen. |
| “Usually, the food suffers when the first lady is uninterested,” Mr. Miller added. “Eleanor Roosevelt was a great example. The food was so bad people actually thought about eating first before going to the White House.” | “Usually, the food suffers when the first lady is uninterested,” Mr. Miller added. “Eleanor Roosevelt was a great example. The food was so bad people actually thought about eating first before going to the White House.” |
| Mrs. Trump only recently brought on additional staff members to help arrange state dinners and other official meals at the White House, the first of which was the black-tie Governors Ball on Sunday. In past administrations, details down to the provenance of the flatware were made public. Not so this year. However, The New York Times obtained a menu: East Coast salmon and a salad of spring peas with pickled ramps, roasted rib-eye steaks from Virginia and Boston cream pie with vanilla ice cream. | Mrs. Trump only recently brought on additional staff members to help arrange state dinners and other official meals at the White House, the first of which was the black-tie Governors Ball on Sunday. In past administrations, details down to the provenance of the flatware were made public. Not so this year. However, The New York Times obtained a menu: East Coast salmon and a salad of spring peas with pickled ramps, roasted rib-eye steaks from Virginia and Boston cream pie with vanilla ice cream. |
| The first couple prefers entertaining at Mar-a-Lago, President Trump’s resort in Palm Beach, Fla. Mr. Trump, a bacon-and-eggs man who likes his steaks well done and perceives fast food as both efficient and sanitary, takes some of his meals in the White House mess, a small staff dining hall near the Situation Room in the West Wing. Mrs. Trump, who had a robust career in modeling, is a champion of drinking water and eating a lot of fruit. | The first couple prefers entertaining at Mar-a-Lago, President Trump’s resort in Palm Beach, Fla. Mr. Trump, a bacon-and-eggs man who likes his steaks well done and perceives fast food as both efficient and sanitary, takes some of his meals in the White House mess, a small staff dining hall near the Situation Room in the West Wing. Mrs. Trump, who had a robust career in modeling, is a champion of drinking water and eating a lot of fruit. |
| The first person she hired was Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, who as senior adviser will help set the first lady’s agenda and fill her staff. Ms. Winston Wolkoff, a New York party planner and former Vogue publicist, agreed to forward to Mrs. Trump a list of questions about her vision for food and entertaining at the White House, but Mrs. Trump did not respond. | The first person she hired was Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, who as senior adviser will help set the first lady’s agenda and fill her staff. Ms. Winston Wolkoff, a New York party planner and former Vogue publicist, agreed to forward to Mrs. Trump a list of questions about her vision for food and entertaining at the White House, but Mrs. Trump did not respond. |
| Some people have speculated that Mr. Trump’s daughter Ivanka, who gardens with her children and whose favorite recipes include broccoli kugel and her mother-in-law’s veal Marsala, may take on some of the duties. | Some people have speculated that Mr. Trump’s daughter Ivanka, who gardens with her children and whose favorite recipes include broccoli kugel and her mother-in-law’s veal Marsala, may take on some of the duties. |
| But don’t expect to see her stamp on White House food, other than perhaps more kosher meals for her Orthodox Jewish family. Ivanka Trump will not be a shadow first lady, said Risa Heller, who handles personal communications for her. In a statement, Hope Hicks, a White House spokeswoman, said, “Ivanka is not involved, but looks forward to seeing the traditions continue under the first lady, who will do an amazing job overseeing these important and historical institutions.” | |
| The president has, of course, the power to set food policy for the entire nation. While Mr. Trump has yet to address the topic directly, he has tipped his hand with tough positions on trade and immigration and his nomination of former Gov. Sonny Perdue of Georgia as agriculture secretary. Mr. Perdue is a former grain trader with ties to large agribusiness interests. | The president has, of course, the power to set food policy for the entire nation. While Mr. Trump has yet to address the topic directly, he has tipped his hand with tough positions on trade and immigration and his nomination of former Gov. Sonny Perdue of Georgia as agriculture secretary. Mr. Perdue is a former grain trader with ties to large agribusiness interests. |
| Mr. Trump clearly understands the theatrical and symbolic power of food. During the campaign, he declared his preference for Kentucky Fried Chicken and taco bowls — the latter, apparently, as a way to appeal to Hispanic voters. He has said that there will be no dinners honoring heads of state as long as the United States has a trade deficit, and that if the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, made a state visit, he would serve him a Big Mac instead of the Colorado lamb with garlic fried milk and baby broccoli that the leader ate with President Barack Obama. | Mr. Trump clearly understands the theatrical and symbolic power of food. During the campaign, he declared his preference for Kentucky Fried Chicken and taco bowls — the latter, apparently, as a way to appeal to Hispanic voters. He has said that there will be no dinners honoring heads of state as long as the United States has a trade deficit, and that if the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, made a state visit, he would serve him a Big Mac instead of the Colorado lamb with garlic fried milk and baby broccoli that the leader ate with President Barack Obama. |
| Mr. Trump keeps copies of menus from important events, including the card from his January lunch with the British prime minister, Theresa May, which featured his favorite wedge salad with blue cheese, beef ribs and salted crème brûlée. | Mr. Trump keeps copies of menus from important events, including the card from his January lunch with the British prime minister, Theresa May, which featured his favorite wedge salad with blue cheese, beef ribs and salted crème brûlée. |
| Cultural pundits have long debated whether the food at the White House shapes how the nation eats, or vice versa. | Cultural pundits have long debated whether the food at the White House shapes how the nation eats, or vice versa. |
| There is evidence for both. Mamie Eisenhower, a military wife enamored of the convenience foods popular in the 1950s, oversaw a thrifty White House kitchen, demanding that the staff make smart use of leftovers. Jacqueline Kennedy hired a French chef and remade White House dining, though public opinion forced her to start serving American wine and writing menus in English rather than French. Ronald and Nancy Reagan helped popularize elegant dining and Jelly Bellies, while George and Barbara Bush favored casual dining and pork rinds. | |
| The idea of a White House garden began to take on political implications when the California chef Alice Waters pestered Bill and Hillary Clinton to install an organic one. Although the White House rejected the notion, saying a kitchen garden would not be in keeping with the formality of the grounds, the Clintons did plant a vegetable garden on the roof. They also hired the White House’s first American chef. | The idea of a White House garden began to take on political implications when the California chef Alice Waters pestered Bill and Hillary Clinton to install an organic one. Although the White House rejected the notion, saying a kitchen garden would not be in keeping with the formality of the grounds, the Clintons did plant a vegetable garden on the roof. They also hired the White House’s first American chef. |
| The Obamas more fully embraced America’s increasing interest in food culture and agriculture, dining at notable new restaurants and opening up the White House to visiting chefs. | The Obamas more fully embraced America’s increasing interest in food culture and agriculture, dining at notable new restaurants and opening up the White House to visiting chefs. |
| “We became ‘foodie aware,’” said Bill Yosses, the head pastry chef in the White House under the Obamas and George and Laura Bush. “It was a good way for new information to make its way to the White House, because you are so closed off from the world.” | “We became ‘foodie aware,’” said Bill Yosses, the head pastry chef in the White House under the Obamas and George and Laura Bush. “It was a good way for new information to make its way to the White House, because you are so closed off from the world.” |
| Mrs. Trump is under no obligation to retain the current White House chef, Cristeta Comerford, or its pastry chef, Susie Morrison, the first women to hold those positions. But there is little indication that their jobs are in peril. | Mrs. Trump is under no obligation to retain the current White House chef, Cristeta Comerford, or its pastry chef, Susie Morrison, the first women to hold those positions. But there is little indication that their jobs are in peril. |
| Their employment could depend on how well they get along with Anna Cristina Niceta Lloyd, known as Rickie, whom Mrs. Trump named as social secretary on Feb. 17. Ms. Niceta Lloyd, an account executive for a Washington caterer, helped coordinate the traditional lunch after Mr. Trump’s swearing-in. She will oversee social events like the Easter Egg Roll, and help plan state dinners and other official meals, working with the White House chief usher, the State Department and Ms. Comerford. | Their employment could depend on how well they get along with Anna Cristina Niceta Lloyd, known as Rickie, whom Mrs. Trump named as social secretary on Feb. 17. Ms. Niceta Lloyd, an account executive for a Washington caterer, helped coordinate the traditional lunch after Mr. Trump’s swearing-in. She will oversee social events like the Easter Egg Roll, and help plan state dinners and other official meals, working with the White House chief usher, the State Department and Ms. Comerford. |
| Ms. Niceta Lloyd did not respond to a request for an interview, and it is not clear how much of a hand she will have in planning official menus. In the past, chefs have tried out dishes for a state dinner at a tasting hosted by the first lady. In the Obama administration, that menu would sometimes include specific vegetables grown for the occasion. | Ms. Niceta Lloyd did not respond to a request for an interview, and it is not clear how much of a hand she will have in planning official menus. In the past, chefs have tried out dishes for a state dinner at a tasting hosted by the first lady. In the Obama administration, that menu would sometimes include specific vegetables grown for the occasion. |
| The kitchen garden, which has produced 2,000 pounds of food a year, planted a flag for the farmers’ market crowd. Its bounty became diplomatic gifts, with Mr. Obama handing out honey from the hives, tea bags made from chamomile and carved wooden boxes of seeds, one of which he gave to Pope Francis. | The kitchen garden, which has produced 2,000 pounds of food a year, planted a flag for the farmers’ market crowd. Its bounty became diplomatic gifts, with Mr. Obama handing out honey from the hives, tea bags made from chamomile and carved wooden boxes of seeds, one of which he gave to Pope Francis. |
| Although a large garden paving stone bears Mrs. Obama’s name and her call to grow a healthier nation for America’s children, there is no reason Mrs. Trump couldn’t put her own stamp on the garden, said George Ball, the chairman and chief executive of the Burpee seed company. His company and the Burpee Foundation have pledged $2.5 million to the National Park Foundation to keep the garden tended for at least 17 years. | Although a large garden paving stone bears Mrs. Obama’s name and her call to grow a healthier nation for America’s children, there is no reason Mrs. Trump couldn’t put her own stamp on the garden, said George Ball, the chairman and chief executive of the Burpee seed company. His company and the Burpee Foundation have pledged $2.5 million to the National Park Foundation to keep the garden tended for at least 17 years. |
| He has urged Mrs. Trump to turn the garden into a showplace for Slovenian produce, the star of which would be the Raka red onion. It’s a hybrid that her maternal grandfather created by crossbreeding an Egyptian red onion with a local Slovenian onion from the town of Ptuj. It is named after his home village, which is known for its onions. | He has urged Mrs. Trump to turn the garden into a showplace for Slovenian produce, the star of which would be the Raka red onion. It’s a hybrid that her maternal grandfather created by crossbreeding an Egyptian red onion with a local Slovenian onion from the town of Ptuj. It is named after his home village, which is known for its onions. |
| Mrs. Trump, whose mother left her work harvesting those onions for a job in a textile mill, does not appear to be particularly connected to her agricultural roots. But Mr. Ball plans to have seeds imported from Slovenia to present to her by the summer, and hopes he can persuade the first family to embrace vegetables, a point he has made in the opinion pages of some daily newspapers. | Mrs. Trump, whose mother left her work harvesting those onions for a job in a textile mill, does not appear to be particularly connected to her agricultural roots. But Mr. Ball plans to have seeds imported from Slovenia to present to her by the summer, and hopes he can persuade the first family to embrace vegetables, a point he has made in the opinion pages of some daily newspapers. |
| “You have a very high-pressure job so, Mr. Trump, you will get far more nutrition from more fresh vegetables,” he said in an interview. | |
| Tanya Steel, the editorial director of the media company Clean Plates, who created a series of Kids’ State Dinners at the White House, said healthful eating should remain a theme under the new administration. “I can see it mapping beautifully if they are really focused on making America great again,” she said. “There isn’t any reason that healthy eating can’t be a bipartisan effort.” | Tanya Steel, the editorial director of the media company Clean Plates, who created a series of Kids’ State Dinners at the White House, said healthful eating should remain a theme under the new administration. “I can see it mapping beautifully if they are really focused on making America great again,” she said. “There isn’t any reason that healthy eating can’t be a bipartisan effort.” |
| Sam Kass, Mr. Obama’s senior policy adviser for nutrition, cooked for the first family and was executive director for Mrs. Obama’s Let’s Move campaign. He doesn’t anticipate a vegetable-forward administration. | Sam Kass, Mr. Obama’s senior policy adviser for nutrition, cooked for the first family and was executive director for Mrs. Obama’s Let’s Move campaign. He doesn’t anticipate a vegetable-forward administration. |
| “I don’t expect to see President Trump expounding the value of spinach and broccoli,” he said. | “I don’t expect to see President Trump expounding the value of spinach and broccoli,” he said. |
| But he is not worried about how changes at the White House will affect the American diet. “This country is already changing,” he said. “We are demanding better food and healthier food. Even on a policy level, I’m not too concerned.” | But he is not worried about how changes at the White House will affect the American diet. “This country is already changing,” he said. “We are demanding better food and healthier food. Even on a policy level, I’m not too concerned.” |