Here Are The Chefs Who Cook For The World's Most Powerful People

Cooking for South African Presidents: Little joined the South African presidential household in 1996, and has cooked for South African presidents including Nelson Mandela. He has won numerous awards, including Salon Culinaire, Bocuse d’Or and Chef of the Year, according to his publisher's website.

While the favorite dish of the current South African president, Jacob Zuma, is under wraps, he recently recreated Mandela's favorite lamb and green bean stew for a cooking event.

In a 2009 interview with PRI's The World, he said that because presidents cannot go out to restaurants, he tries to keep things varied in the kitchen. "In South Africa we have what’s called a rainbow cuisine, a little bit of everything, you know? We call it 'some of cuisine': some of this and some of that," he said.

Cooking for the Queen: "Her majesty has very simple tastes, very down to earth," Flanagan recently told a Macau publication. "Our style is very classical, although we do try to encourage some contemporary dishes. The kitchen is based on traditional French style cuisine."

Flanagan, who has worked at the palace for the past 12 years, and oversaw the buffet-style breakfast served to 600 guests following the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.

Cooking for President Francois Hollande: Vaussion has worked at France's Elysee Palace for 40 years, and is now cooking for his sixth French president.

Artichokes have been banned from the kitchen since Francois Hollande took office; the French president reportedly despises them.

"But [Vaussion] is delighted that cheese is back on the Elysee menu after being banished from the table during the term of Hollande's chocaholic predecessor, Nicolas Sarkozy," the Daily News reported.

Cooking for King Bhumibol Adulyadej: Italian chef Kostner started cooking in Bangkok in 1970, and is the executive chef for the Oriental Hotel in Bangkok.

A fellow chef wrote of Kostner's style: "Norbert Kostner celebrates premium, traditional, classic Thai cuisine, such as hor mok pla nai bai bua, a stuffing of sea bream, lime leaves, basil, eggs and curry paste, wrapped in lotus leaves, steamed and served with creamed coconut. The hot and sour mango salad, with poached, drained and deep-fried slivers of fish is also a hit and a good example of the four flavours on which Thai cuisine is based: salty, sweet, sour and hot."

Cooking for Chancellor Angela Merkel: Merkel reportedly loves cheese, which is kept stocked in her kitchen.

For last year's meeting of the Club des Chefs des Chefs, which Kerz hosted in Berlin, he served a luncheon of Merkel's favorites, which included German specialties, vegetables, and fried fish.

Cooking for Austrian officials: As the chef in charge of official receptions, Schnait has cooked for the Prince of Jordan, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, and the Prime Minister of Sweden.

Schnait trained in several Austrian hotels, including the Hotel Bristol Vienna, where he became executive chef in 1989.

Cooking for Prime Minister Stephen Harper: "The Harpers, including their two children, were fans of 'typical Alberta' fare — ribs, simple salads and fresh fruit," the Montreal Gazette reported in 2010 in an interview with the PM's former chef. He also said the Harpers were fans of comfort food and one-pot dishes.

Wasylko came on board at the PM's residence after the Canadian Supreme Court poached the previous chef. He worked for hotels including the Fairmont Chateaus in Whistler and Montebello, and did a stint at the Canadian embassy in Mexico before becoming chef to the Prime Minister in 2010.

Cooking for President Michael D. Higgins: McBride has acted as chef to Ireland's president for nearly three decades.

One of her favorite recipes is an Irish stew made with lamb, carrots, potatoes, thyme and lamb stock. "In the wintertime, it's good and nourishing," she said in a 2004 interview. 

Cooking for President Obama: Comerford, who was raised in the Philippines, worked as a hotel chef before being recruited to work in the Clinton White House.

Thanks to Michelle Obama's healthy eating initiative, Comerford has focused on using seasonal ingredients grown in the White House's vegetable garden. One item President Obama won't touch? Beetroots, according to the AFP.

On cooking for China's leaders: The two chefs told JC Hayward that this week's visit was their first trip to the United States. They said Peking Duck was a popular dish among international leaders.

Cooking for Prince Albert II: Garcia told AFP that Prince Albert is a "fine gourmet" and fan of home-grown cuisine, with lots of food coming from his organic garden.

He's also started cooking the South African specialty bobotie, a spiced meat dish baked with an egg topping, since the Prince's marriage to South African swimmer Charlene Wittstock.

One thing the Prince refuses to eat? Offal, according to Garcia.

Cooking for Israeli officials: Kadosh is a relative newcomer to the Club des Chefs des Chefs, having joined in 2011. While Israeli statesmen don't have private chefs, Kadosh has cooked for Israeli prime ministers and heads of state visiting Israel for many years, according to Ynetnews.

One major challenge? Keeping food Kosher, even when guests don't observe the Jewish dietary laws.

“I’ve never seen kashrut as something that limits me. Of course your hands are tied regarding certain ingredients, but I’ve always seen it as a challenge and have never hid behind it to say, ‘I can’t do that,’ ” Kadosh told Israel21c. “I’ve prepared meals for French presidents, and they’ve asked me afterwards, ‘was that really kosher?’ To me, that’s the best compliment.”

Cooking for President Giorgio Napolitano: In 2009, Boca co-hosted the Club des Chefs des Chefs in Italy. He focused on simple recipes: ''Fads will come and go, but a plate of spaghetti in tomato sauce won't,'' Boca told Teatro Naturale.

According to Abbondanza! magazine:

The Italian Presidents’ spaghetti al pomodoro is made by dropping fresh Italian tomatoes in boiling water for a count of ten before transferring them to a dish of ice water to stop them from cooking any further. Once peeled and de-seeded, the pulp is fried in extra virgin olive oil, garlic and a few leaves of basil, with no added sugar or salt.

On cooking for President Pranab Mukherjee: Not much is known about what Kasture cooks for Mukherjee, who took office last year. But the Indian prsident reportedly loves fish curry, which he eats almost daily, as well as poppy seeds that are ground and cooked with vegetables, according to NDTV. 

On his trip to the U.S., Kasture cooked a butter chicken dish for residents of a New York homeless shelter. The New York Times wrote of the experience:

"He imported the blended powder of cloves, cinnamon, cardamom and fennel in his carry-on. When he was stopped and questioned at Kennedy Airport, he told the customs agent, “I'’m a chef, and I’m cooking for President Obama.'”

Cooking in Sri Lanka: In addition to overseeing official receptions in Sri Lanka, Fernandopulle is the Executive Chef at the Hilton Colombo. He's spent his career in hotel kitchens, including 27 years with Hilton.

He has competed in the Culinary Olympics and received the Chef of the Year Presidential Award in Travel & Tourism in Sri Lanka in 2008.

On cooking for Swiss officials: In addition to his official duties, Zimmermann is the chef at the Bellevue Palace in Bern, Switzerland.

He told Executive Traveller of his cooking style: "I strip my menu back to roots. All food sourced are made from the best possible ingredients and simply, my food is about really tasting the ingredients. I only use three or four ingredients per dish, then I add oil and seasoning to highlight the flavours."

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