Obama's First State Dinner Party

Dinner and partying with the President. Sounds perfect to me. Dining is one of life's greatest pleasures, but when we are talking about a State dinner, that's another thing. This is a very high-class cuisine party event.
According to an Associated Press article, published at Yahoo, "the first state dinner of the Obama White House had it all: Oscar-winning entertainers, Hollywood moguls, a knockout guest chef and even a wardrobe malfunction." Also explained, "The 338-person guest list was a mix of wonky Washington, Hollywood A-listers, prominent figures from the Indian community in the U.S., and Obama friends, family and campaign donors." The event, in fact, is taking place as we speak, Tuesday, November 24, 2009. The article continued, "guests were seated 10 apiece at round tables draped in green apple-colored cloths and napkins, offset by the sparkle of gold-colored flatware and china, including service and dinner plates from the Eisenhower, Clinton and George W. Bush settings. There were very important guests, as it mentions: "Among the other guests: Hollywood moguls David Geffen and Jeffrey Katzenberg. Guests with ties to India included spiritual adviser Deepak Chopra, director M. Night Shyamalan and PepsiCo chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi. Katie Couric of CBS News, Brian Williams of NBC News, Robin Roberts of ABC News and CNN Medical Correspondent Sanjay Gupta were among the media representatives invited. Oprah Winfrey was not on the list, but her best friend, Gayle King, was among the guests."
Check out the videos, one from from NBC Today, previewing the big event and the newest one from ABC News, with coverage from the event . Dinner time!

http://www.hulu.com/watch/110796/nbc-today-show-obamas-prepare-to-host-first-state-dinner

http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=9170236

Obama and Biden Had Lunch at Ray's Hell Burger

President Barack Obama and Vicepresident Joe Biden had a burger for lunch today at Ray´s Hell Burger in Arlington, Virginia, without further notice to the press, as seen on Politico.com. Today, the press was covering this news, and videos were running all over television and internet. Read more from the politico.com report:

"A group of about 100 people lined up at the corner of Quinn and Wilson Blvd., across the street from the small strip mall that is home to Ray's Hell Burger.

The man they were waiting to see emerged at 1:06 p.m. after dining with Vice President Joe Biden and won cheers from those in the crowd that could see him. Wearing white shirt-sleeves, President Barack Obama stood up on what appeared to be a car and waved." Also, Politico's Jonathan Martin quotes Ray's owner Michael Landrum as calling the visit "one of the greatest days of my life."

"I guess he was missing some good food from Chicago," Landrum quipped."

"The initial reaction of the other customers: "Madness," he said."
Also, "Obama purchased burgers not only for himself and Biden, but also for several members of the press pool that tailed him to lunch across the Potomac. Cheeseburgers at Ray's retail at $7.95, and Obama deposited a $5 bill in the tip jar.

With their lunches in hand, Obama and Biden sat atop stools, like most of the other customers.

A few of those customers remained in the small, burgers-only joint to savor the moment and finish their meal after Obama left.

"I had lunch with the president,"exclaimed Robert Gooch to nobody in particular. "
"Another customer proudly showed off the cell phone camera shot he took of the jacket-less Obama and Biden chowing down together."

According to the article, "Landrum went back behind the counter to keep pushing out burgers but took the time to greet another store owner in the small Rosslyn strip, just blocks from POLITICO world headquarters."
Take a look at the POLITICO video with the link provided here.

http://www.politico.com/singletitlevideo.html?bcpid=1155201977&bctid=22193899001

Barack Obama's Favorite Places to Eat in Hawaii

Barack Obama. How many people on the globe doesn't know that name? The 44th U.S. president, attorney, golfer, author, husband, dad. I was reading at Hawaii's official tourism site www.gohawaii.com that Obama frequents the restaurants in the Kapahulu area, on the outskirts of Waikiki and that he’s been known to get a local style plate lunch from the Rainbow Drive-In and the 24-hour Oahu mainstay, Zippy’s. According to the official website, "When Barack Obama returns to Hawaii with his family, he comes as a kamaaina, a local who knows where to go, where to eat and what to do". Also said, "During his most recent holiday visit, Obama reportedly bought two spam musubis while enjoying a day of golf at the Olomana Golf Links. A sure sign that Obama is a true local, Spam musubi is a popular Hawaii snack consisting of a Japanese onigiri, or rice ball, with a slice of cooked spam on it and wrapped with nori, or dried seaweed." If you wish to read the whole article go here.

Another interesting article from USA Today titled Eat at Obama's Favorite Hawaii Restaurants says that "President Barack Obama doesn't need a restaurant guide when he visits Hawaii", and guide us to Obama's favorite eateries. Some of his favorite spots, according to the article, are Indigo, Alan Wong's, Rainbow Drive-In, Grace's Inn, Chowder House, Kua Aina Sandwich, Mariposa, Koko Marina Paradise and Kokonuts Shave Ice in Honolulu. According to the article, other spots include Zippy's in Oahu and Maui, Island Snow Shave Ice in Kailua, and Sakura Restaurant in Waimanalo.

So, next time you travel to Hawaii, don't forget to write down this list so you can tell your friends you ate at "Obama's place".

(Front cover photo from Time Magazine)