Pierre Chambrin (born September 13, 1947) was the

White House Executive Chef The White House executive chef is the individual responsible for managing the kitchens, and for planning and preparing of all menus and meals for the president of the United States and the first family, which includes their private meals, their ...

from 1989 to 1994.

Early life and career

Chambrin was born in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

on September 13, 1947. He received his culinary education at the Ecole des Metiers de l'alimentation, which he attended from 1961 to 1963. He moved to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1969 and opened a restaurant in

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. In 1979 Chambrin took over the

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

restaurant Maison Blanche, located near the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

White House

Chambrin was appointed under the presidency of

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

to succeed Hans Raffert. Under the

Clinton administration Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following his victory over Republican in ...

, a group of prominent American chefs, led by

Alice Waters Alice Louise Waters (born April 28, 1944) is an American chef, restaurateur, food writer, and author. In 1971, she opened Chez Panisse, a restaurant in Berkeley, California, famous for its role in creating the farm-to-table movement and for ...

, sent a letter to the White House urging an appointment of a chef who would "promote American cooking," although Chambrin stated that he was already using American ingredients and that his first concern was food quality.

Ruth Reichl Ruth Reichl ( ; born 1948) is an American chef, food writer and editor. In addition to two decades as a food critic, mainly spent at the ''Los Angeles Times'' and ''The New York Times'', Reichl has also written cookbooks, memoirs and a novel, and ...

defended the chef in an article in the

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

, calling him "enthusiastic about just about everything organic, and so excited by the idea of seasonality," and pointing out that it was not the norm for new administrations to appoint a new chef. In March 1994, however, Chambrin resigned after a push from the administration to impose newer health standards, specifically using food with less fat, a standard that Chambrin was unwilling to conform to. It was widely reported that he was asked to resign, although he says that this is not the case and it was his own decision. Chambrin's staff of three chefs left the White House with him. He was succeeded by Walter Scheib.

Later career

After leaving the White House, Chambrin became the executive chef at the Saint Louis Club in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

. The Maitres Cuisiniers de France named him "Chef of the Year" in 2008, and the Academie Culinaire de France bestowed its Lifetime Achievement Award on him in 2013.

Personal life

Chambrin has been married to his wife Linda since 1977 and has two children Sabrina (John) Jureidini and Pierre (Giselle) Chambrin and three grandchildren. He became a

United States citizen Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constitu ...

in 1977.

References

External links

Website of the St. Louis Club
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chambrin, Pierre White House executive chefs American chefs 1947 births Living people French emigrants to the United States Naturalized citizens of the United States Chefs from Washington, D.C.