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Celebrity Cook-Off With Chancellor Michelle Rhee And Councilman Jack Evans

November 13, 2009
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Team A plans its three-course meal (from left: Star Rhee, D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, Drew Melman-Rogers, Season 5 Top Chef finalist/D.C. caterer Carla Hall, Brian J. Glade of the Society for Human Resource Management).
Rebecca Sheir
Team A plans its three-course meal (from left: Star Rhee, D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, Drew Melman-Rogers, Season 5 Top Chef finalist/D.C. caterer Carla Hall, Brian J. Glade of the Society for Human Resource Management).

By Kavitha Cardoza

Some leaders in the District are digesting the results of the latest beef in city government: a celebrity cook-off that pitted Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee against Ward 2 councilmember Jack Evans. Their teams had to serve up a three course meal and signature drink in 35 minutes.

Rhee cooks a mean lasagna while Evans serves up perfect pancakes. But in this high pressure kitchen cook-off, it wasn't clear if those skills were enough. Until you realized that the reason both weren't worried about having to cook with secret ingredients because they'd brought along their secret weapons- their children-as acting sous chefs.

Rhee's daughter Starr says she'd prepared her mom, "I made her watch the food network with me. I didn't really coach her as much as I should have!"

Evans daughter Christine had prepped her dad, "Always cook your meat very well. And if you want to season your vegetables put a little pepper and salt and a little lemon. Tastes pretty good!"

Both sides chopped, mixed and fried their way for the meal, but in the end Team A won. That was the team Rhee was on, which cooked a shrimp and tofu salad, a steak and asparagus pasta and a mango lassi with melted gummy bears.

How did the experience compare to running D.C. Public Schools?

"There was a lot of pressure like there is in the school district but with running the school district I sort of know what I'm doing more."

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