Charles Arthur Smith (born March 1, 1960) is an American

chef A chef is a professional Cook (profession), cook and tradesperson who is proficient in all aspects of outline of food preparation, food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term (), the di ...

who has worked for former

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

governors

Bob Graham Daniel Robert Graham (November 9, 1936 – April 16, 2024) was an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 38th List of governors of Florida, governor of Florida from 1979 to 1987 and a United States Senate, United States senat ...

and

Jeb Bush John Ellis "Jeb" Bush (born February 11, 1953) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 43rd governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. A member of the Bush family, Bush political family, he was an unsuccessful candidate for pre ...

and until 2007 was personal chef to

Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954) is an American television presenter, talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and media proprietor. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show' ...

. His expertise is Southern cuisine. While attending

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

, he completed culinary internships with

The Greenbrier The Greenbrier is a luxury resort located in the Allegheny Mountains near White Sulphur Springs in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, in the United States. Since 1778, visitors have traveled to this part of the state to "take the waters" of t ...

and the Walt Disney Magic Kingdom College Program.

Publications

Smith has written three cookbooks: ''Back to the Table''; ''Kitchen Life: Real Food for Real Families''; and ''Back to the Family''. He contributed recipes and cooking advice to ''The Spectrum'', the newest book by cardiologist and New York Times bestselling author Dean Ornish. He edits a monthly article on Oprah.com and contributes articles to ''

O, The Oprah Magazine ''O, The Oprah Magazine'', also known simply as ''O'', is an American monthly magazine founded by talk show host Oprah Winfrey and Hearst Communications. In 2021, Winfrey and Hearst rebranded it as ''Oprah Daily''. Overview It was first pu ...

''. His latest cookbook is ''Art Smith's Healthy Comfort'' (published by Harper One 2013).

Projects

Common Threads

Smith founded the non-profit charity Common Threads, which is focused on community health through food and nutrition. The nonprofit provides cooking and nutrition classes, along with a curriculum that aims to teach community educators how to create healthy, culturally accessible and inexpensive meals. He is on the board of directors of “Kids Café”, a nutrition program for children in

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

. Smith owns and runs a restaurant in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

called TABLE fifty-two as well as Art and Soul in

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 ...

He is the executive chef and co-owner of Southern Art and Bourbon Bar in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, Joanne Trattoria, and LYFE Kitchen restaurants. In 2009, Smith raised $10,000 for Common Threads as a participant on the television show

Top Chef Masters ''Top Chef Masters'' is an American reality competition series that aired on the cable television network Bravo (American TV network), Bravo, and premiered June 10, 2009. It is a spinoff (media), spinoff of Bravo's hit show ''Top Chef''. In the ...

, Season 1.

Events

Smith has cooked for former

President Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. Ob ...

and Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden. In addition to being chef for Florida Governor

, he cooked for Florida Governor

, Romero Britto, film stars Ali Landry and Eduardo Verástegui amongst many others. He has also appeared on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Smith also appeared in a cooking segment in

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her image reinventions and versatility across the entertainment industry, she is an influ ...

's 2011 ABC special '' A Very Gaga Thanksgiving'' in which he and Gaga prepared a

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...

meal of

turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

and

waffle A waffle is a dish made from leavened Batter (cooking), batter or dough that is cooked between two plates that are patterned to give a characteristic size, shape, and surface impression. There are many variations based on the type of waffle iron ...

s. Months later, Smith became the head chef of Joanne Trattoria, an Italian restaurant in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

owned by Lady Gaga's parents.

Awards

* The 2002

James Beard Award The James Beard Foundation Awards are annual awards presented by the James Beard Foundation to recognize chefs, restaurateurs, authors and journalists in the United States. They are scheduled around James Beard's May 5 birthday. The media awar ...

for ''Back to the Table: The Reunion of Food and Family''. *200
Gourmand World Cookbook Award
- Category, “For Human Values.” *Humanitarian of the Year, 2007, James Beard Foundation *In 2008 Art Smith was inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame.

Personal

Smith lives in Jasper, Florida with his husband, Jesus Salgueiro, a painter. The two married at the Lincoln Memorial in 2011, after being together 10 years. They donate their time to many causes, from children's cooking classes to humanitarian aid. He and his husband have adopted five children., 30 June 2014.

References

External links

Common Threads
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Art 1960 births Living people People from Jasper, Florida Chefs from Chicago American male chefs American food writers LGBTQ people from Florida James Beard Foundation Award winners 21st-century American LGBTQ people LGBTQ chefs