Club des Chefs des Chefs, an exclusive group for the personal cooks for the world's leaders, recently met in London for their first rendezvous in the UK. The club includes 21 members from across the globe, from White House chef Cristeta Comerford to Bernard Vaussion, head chef for French president Francois Hollande. Notably absent was the private chef to Vladmir Putin.
The chefs travel all over the world for their annual meetings to swap tips and tricks, as well as the eating habits of their employers. For example, Queen Elizabeth of England is said to avoid shellfish, while the late South African president Nelson Mandela enjoyed "comfort foods" like stews and oxtail.
The group's motto, "whilst politics can sometimes divide people, good food always brings them back together," is one that should ring true for any personal chef. According to some of the attendees, they often find their role plays a crucial part in negotiations, and chefs that don't work for world leaders may feel similar pressure when cooking for CEOs for business functions. French president Francois Hollande told the group last year that a poor meal during tense negotiations can make it harder for the host country to make a deal.
"If you wreck a dish, it's harder to plead a cause," Hollande warned the chefs, according to The Telegraph. The French strategist Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord once made a similar statement to Napoleon Bonaparte: "Give me a good chef and I shall give you good treaties."
Of course, cooking for heads of state is a privilege and honor that not all personal cooks aspire to. For those that do, gaining invaluable experience cooking for the celebrities in Los Angeles is a good start to your resume. Consider expanding your horizons and working for a family in Orange County to starting building a more impressive repertoire of recipes and experience – before applying to a position in the White House. Colonial Domestic Agency can help place you with the household most in need of your unique skills in the kitchen.