Congressional Picnic
Celebrity chef Paul Prudhomme brought his brand of New Orleans cuisine to the South Lawn of the White
| AP |
House on Tuesday night for the annual Congressional Picnic.
The rotund, garrulous Prudhomme served barbecued shrimp, spinach salad with blue cheese dressing, potato salad, butter beans, fried green tomatoes, blackened fish, fried chicken, bronzed beef with gingersnap gravy, and chicken and sausage gumbo to the 1,500-plus guests.
A White House spokeswoman said Prudhomme brought about 75 percent of the food from Louisiana. He’s not a White House novice, either: He cooked for the picnic in 1987, during President Reagan’s final term.
New Orleans jazz artist Kermit Ruffins entertained the crowd, as did press secretary Tony Snow’s band, Beats Workin’. Snow’s set included “Johnny B. Goode” and the Doobie Brothers’ “China Grove.”
“I thank Tony Snow and his bunch of, well, mediocre musicians … no, great musicians,” joked President Bush.
