"Tony Mantuano" news and stories

Readers: you might notice a couple changes to the Top Chef Masters exit interview post this week -- the title and the photo. Our goal in presenting these exclusive interviews is to satisfy our readers who are huge Top Chef fans in a timely, lively fashion. Some of you who hadn't yet watched the show were upset that the title and leading photo spoiled the show's outcome in past weeks. We will continue to do these exit interviews, but will mask the "loser" by not featuring their profile photo or name in the title.

Read on for our exit interview with the latest Top Chef Master to get the boot.

Endless Simmer just put up a speculative piece about the next White House Executive Chef. Before going off the deep end with their suggestions that the Obamas try out Rachel Ray, Cindy McCain, and butter sculptor Duffy Lion, the site laid out three front runners for the job: Art Smith, Tony Mantuano, and Criseta Comerford. Smith and Mantuano are both noted chefs with prominent restaurants; Smith runs "Art and Soul," while Mantuano owns the Obamas' favorite Chicago eatery, Spiaggia. The third choice, Criseta Comerford, is the current White House Executive Chef.

After reading Endless Simmer's piece, I took a peek through The White House Family Cookbook. Written by Henry Haller, Executive Chef at the White House for over 25 years, the book showcases the wide variety of foods that Presidential families have eaten over the years. Based on Haller, I tend to disagree with Endless Simmer's first two suggestions for a few basic reasons. First off, while being the big Kahuna in the White House kitchen is a great honor, it isn't exactly necessarily a great career move. In fact, most people don't really know anything about the White House Executive Chef until he or she releases a cookbook, usually after leaving the job. With this in mind, it seems unlikely that an established chef would walk away from a prominent restaurant to toil in relative obscurity.

The second problem with Smith and Mantuano is that the skills required of a White House chef are significantly different than those required of a restaraunteur. To achieve fame in the restaurant profession, a chef needs to develop a personal style that is distinctive and unique. A White House chef, on the other hand, needs to be able to prepare a wide variety of foods to absolute perfection. While this gives a lot of room to try new things, it doesn't allow a lot of room for personal expression. A creme brulee has to follow the classical definition of the dish, and a pancake has to be a perfect, if bland, pancake. For established chefs, the inability to put a personal spin on every dish would be painful at best.

After three years of working in the White House, Comerford probably has a great deal of experience with mastering the preferred styles and tastes of numerous White House visitors. Beyond that, she already knows her way around the kitchen and has a place in the city. My money is definitely on her!