Wanted: new chef for White House

AVOCADO and heirloom tomato salad beneath a spicy, toasted cumin dressing. Tiny bay scallops, lightly caramelised, folded into a risotto and served with lobster sauce.

A roasted rack of lamb. A chef who can pull this off just might have a future in the White House kitchen.

The search is on for a White House chef who can do it all, from simple munchies for the president to elaborate state dinners featuring America's best.

After nearly 11 years of cooking for two presidents, chef Walter Scheib III has left the kitchen at America's most famous house to pursue new opportunities.

The White House needs a flexible kitchen wizard capable of whipping up everything from a simple sandwich - President George W Bush is partial to peanut butter and jelly - to fancy menus that titillate the taste buds of the dozens who attend its glamorous receptions and state dinners, say those in the know.

Other likely ingredients for the new head cook include a thorough knowledge of American cuisine and international tastes, and a personality that can stand the pressure cooker.

"It shouldn't be someone that's pulling things out of cans," said Robert Wiedmaier, chef and owner of Marcel's, a French-Belgian restaurant near the White House.

Sara Moulton, executive chef at Gourmet magazine, said the job is an "awesome responsibility" and, for the new chef, the "single most important thing is that you be completely adaptable and completely versatile."

Besides preparing mouthwatering meals, the chef should have a good personality, be good with people and budgets, and be versed in international cuisine, said Letitia Baldrige, who was social secretary in the Kennedy White House. "It's a very complicated job and it's 24 hours a day," she said.

As executive chef at the White House, Mr Scheib's duties include preparing all menus and meals for the First Family and their private entertaining, as well as office and state dinners.

Planning for a state dinner takes two months, he said, starting with a tasting dinner for the First Lady, after which the menu is revised and a second tasting may or may not be held.

A list of guests' individual and dietary food preferences are sent to the kitchen in advance.

In an online chat on the White House website, Mr Scheib said he cooked casual food such as hamburgers, french fries and barbecues for Mr and Mrs Bush.

Whoever ends up doing the cooking should be thankful. During President Grant's administration (1869-1877), dinners consisted of a whopping 29 courses. The number of courses was pared to four by Mrs Kennedy - and remains.