Omnivore Atlanta

It’s hard to believe how desperate media dimwits have become to attack President Obama. Having gone nuts over his mention of arugula during the election campaign, they are now apoplectic over his ordering a hamburger without ketchup, requesting spicy mustard instead. Dijon! You know, like that fancy-schmancy Grey Poupon.

Above, Sean Hannity, a man who probably uses ketchup for a sexual lubricant, discourses on the “scandal.” But Hannity was calm compared to Laura Ingraham, who ranted about the mustard in the context of a  bromance between the president and his vice-bro, Joe Biden.

Meanwhile, Salon.com’s Alex Koppelman has a brief piece on the brouhaha and refers to a fascinating read in the New Yorker by Malcolm Gladwell. It demonstrates that, given a choice, the great majority of people prefer Grey Poupon over America’s harsher yellow mustards.

UPDATE: Michelle gets into the act.

Bookmark to:

Obama the Foodie and his fellow Democrats may re-invigorate the Washington dining scene. The New York Times says:

Franco Nuschese, the owner of Cafe Milano — which opened around the start of the Clinton administration but stayed hot through the Bush administration — said the only difference he saw between Republicans and Democrats was perhaps when they ate, not what they ate.

“That’s not a crowd you were going to find later at night, they would eat earlier,” he said of Bush administration officials. “It was a conservative group.” Speaking of the incoming Obama team, he said, “I don’t think this is going to be a very early, formal group.”

When he was in the Senate, Mr. Obama could regularly be seen at the upscale Bistro Bis on Capitol Hill. On his presidential run, he tended to leave reporters waiting outside for hours while dining at his favorite Chicago restaurants, Spiaggia, a grand Italian place on the city’s Gold Coast, or Topolobampo, one of the Mexican restaurants owned by Rick Bayless.

“They really enjoy sitting around the table exploring the different flavors — they always eat tasting menus,” Mr. Bayless said in an interview. “He’s not one who sort of plunks down and says, ‘I’ll have the beef.’ He asks questions.”

Now, if we could just get Shirley Franklin to a few restaurants around Grant Park.

Bookmark to:

UPDATE BELOW

If I wanted to turn a dinner party into torture, I’d create a guest list like this:

Obama Tuesday night trekked to the Chevy Chase, Md., home of conservative columnist George F. Will to talk politics and get to know some of his fiercest intellectual adversaries: Charles Krauthammer, William Kristol, Larry Kudlow, David Brooks, Rich Lowry, Peggy Noonan, Michael Barone, and Paul Gigot.

They ate lamb. I assume it was cooked.

Wednesday, Obama met with liberal pundit types. They didn’t even get a cup of coffee!

UPDATE: I stand corrected. Liberals did, after all, get a cup of coffee. Bill Kristol rubs it in.

Bookmark to:

(Photo from SMH.com)

Bookmark to:

NPR tracked down Barack Obama’s favorite Chicago restaurant today and interviewed the owner/chef.

The restaurant is Topolobampo, which chef Rick Bayless opened in 1989 after opening Frontera Grill two years earlier. Before getting into the restaurant business, Bayless was a PhD student in anthropological linguistics. His research took him to Mexico. He realized he was more interested in the food than anything else about Mexican culture, so he dropped out of his program to become a full-time chef.

Bayless’ restaurants, according to NPR, are the first in America to feature gourmet Mexican cooking. Maybe. I was eating gourmet Mexican fare at restaurants in which Diana Kennedy was involved in Austin and Houston just over 20 years ago. But Bayless, who has written a handful of cookbooks, is definitely among the pioneers.

NPR poses the question whether we can conclude anything about Obama because of what he likes to eat. They don’t really answer the question, but Bayless does note that Obama and wife Michelle experiment with the menu, take their time eating and have recently moved to a less conspicuous table in the rear of the restaurant. Undoubtedly, those who revile Obama as an elitist for his arugula consumption will likewise wonder why he’s not content with enchiladas and chimichangas.

You can listen to the piece and get some recipes here. Next week, John McCain’s palate will be on display.

Bookmark to: