White House Chef Sam Kass Does It All

Chef Sam Kass is a busy guy. The New York Times ran a story in the Dining section today about the newest White House chef (official title: assistant White House chef and Food Initiative Coordinator). Not only does he feed the First Family, he helps Michelle Obama tend to her garden, and thinks of ways to fight childhood obesity. Kass is unique among First Chefs in that most people in his position are not involved in public policy. Another distinctive characteristic is that he has no formal culinary training; he never went to culinary school or ran his own kitchen. His only restaurant experience before becoming a private chef was at Avec in Chicago. He has a personal relationship with the President, having cooked for him and his family for two years before they moved to Washington. "He was a focused, clean, hardworking cook who really knew what good food should taste like," said Paul Kahan, the executive chef and a partner at Avec, where Kass worked. "But he always made it very clear t

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