Adrian Miller, a James Beard award-winning author, follows up on his book, “Soul Food,” with a fascinating look at the kitchen staff for United States Presidents from George Washington to Barack Obama. “The President’s Kitchen Cabinet” doesn’t sound particularly interesting until one thinks of the many different people that have been stuffed into the President’s kitchen, turning out who knows what for how many meals using who knows what ingredients for who knows whom will be eating. That’s a gargantuan effort.

Some 150 of the chefs, personal cooks, butlers, stewards, and servers, most of them African Americans, are discussed by Miller, along with their employers and families.
Personal food preferences, complicated personalities, kindly relationships, and complex meal arrangements are outlined, along with many recipes that either come from the White House or are derived from them to work in modern kitchens.

There are many situations that arise in a President’s life that entail travel on trains, planes, and by water, sometimes to faraway places. The feeding must continue using limited facilities and personnel, but the President still must eat and be assured of receiving the food he prefers. The logistics are staggering yet go off, for the most part, without a hitch.

Miller is a talented writer who knows, through experience and research, of what he speaks. Much of the material is anecdotal, revealing the persona of our nation’s leaders. There are quirky needs, individual preferences that seem arbitrary, temper tantrums that are frightening, and logistical nightmares that seem unsolvable. But the men and women of Miller’s study are patient, loyal, and extremely innovative. I am happy that Miller has given me the opportunity to meet them. I can’t wait to try some of the intriguing recipes.

Schuyler T Wallace
Author of TIN LIZARD TALES

Historical cookbooks tend to be a lot of fun; there is something about preparing dishes in your own kitchen that have historical significance. Presidents are the royalty of America, and it’s nice to know that even though most of us really aren’t a part of that scene, we can always imagine what it would be like to sample the dishes that our past presidents did. The President's Kitchen Cabinet: The Story of the African Americans Who Have Fed Our First Families, from the Washingtons to the Obamas is a historical cookbook, as well as a fascinating look at white house kitchens in history and the chefs who prepared dishes for our presidents over the years.

The book is well-written, the recipes are concise and easy to follow, and there are old photos of presidents past. The book focuses on the African American chefs throughout the years, which seems odd, since culinary prowess certainly has nothing to do with race. These chefs were simply mega-talented Americans who were skilled enough to cook for the ultimate American royalty and did a superior job. This cookbook includes fascinating information on how the white house kitchen is run, and dozens of vignettes from presidential history. It’s a great book to cozy up and read on a rainy day.

Some of the mouthwatering dishes included are Zephyr Wright’s Popovers which were a favorite of Lynda Bird Johnson Robb, eldest daughter of Lyndon and Lady Bird Johnson (and, incidentally, which turn out perfectly every time), Hoecakes, from George Washington’s day, and Clinton’s favorite Jerk Chicken Pita Pizza. In the queue are Sesame and Wasabi Crusted Halibut which I’ll make when I can afford halibut, Daisy Bonner’s Cheese Soufflé which she made on the day her beloved President Franklin D. Roosevelt died, and Minted Green Pea Soup which was a favorite of Laura Bush.

The one thing that is missing from this cookbook is colored pictures of the excellent dishes, which would be helpful since it’s always nice to see what a finished dish is supposed to look like. However, it’s so fun to prepare the dishes, we can just take our own pictures and savor the delicious foods.

Highly recommended for history buffs, this book is an excellent addition to any comprehensive cookbook collection.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

I received an advance reading copy of this book from Netgalley.com. This was an interesting idea--a non-fiction book about the hardworking people who cooked for the presidents starting with George Washington. I found the stories and the people totally fascinating. George Washington's cook was a black slave named Hercules who was a kind of dandy. I had never heard of him before--like most of the people in the book. I am glad that someone took the time to tell their stories. My only complaint is that the book seemed a bit scattered. We might be talking about Thomas Jefferson on one page and then FDR on the next. This book also humanized the presidents--revealing how they treated their staff. It gave another side to those men who held the highest office. Cooking at the White House is definitely not for the faint of heart. Not only must you be a fabulous cook, but you must also have the personality to deal with the politics. The writing itself was good and the stories very entertaining, but the structure was lacking. Instead of skipping around, the author could have stayed within a time period before moving on to the next. If you are interested in American History, you will like this book. All in all, I liked it and would recommend it.