Angelina Jolie, Olympic snowboarder Chloe Kim, HGTV stars Joanna and Chip Gaines, and Broadway star Norm Lewis are among the guests at the White House for the South Korea state dinner. The Bidens are welcoming South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and his wife for Wednesday’s glam affair. The Associated Press has the story:
Jolie, Chloe Kim glam up S. Korea state dinner
Newslooks- WASHINGTON (AP)
Actor Angelina Jolie, home improvement duo Chip and Joanna Gaines and Olympic snowboarder Chloe Kim headlined the list of big names from politics, business, sports and entertainment glamming up a fancy black-tie dinner that President Joe Biden hosted Wednesday night for South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.
Broadway’s Lea Salonga, one of the night’s entertainers, confessed as she arrived that she was “freaking out” over the whole experience, allowing, “It feels like being in the middle of a fairy tale.” Kim, for her part, served up a classic understatement as she strolled in, telling reporters, ”I heard the food’s going to be very good.” Jolie wasn’t inclined to chat as she arrived but her date for the night, 21-year-old son Maddox, did at least offer that his favorite thing about Seoul was “the people.”
A smattering of politicians made the guest list, too, and most of them were determinedly on message, talking a lot of shop. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., held forth on infrastructure, debt reduction and the budget. Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., talked abortion rights. Former Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker, a big Democratic donor from Illinois, talked up plans for the Democratic convention in Chicago, promising, “of course” it will go well.
Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, proudly showed off her traditional hanbok gown, saying it was important to showcase cultural diversity. She added that the big challenge with the gown was “not to trip over it.”
Also among the nearly 200 guests were Arthur Blank, a co-founder of Home Depot; “Pachinko” author Min Jin Lee; and former Major League Baseball pitcher Chan Ho Park. Republican Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah also was attending, as were the governors of Delaware, New Jersey and Vermont.
On a perfect spring day, guests entered the White House by strolling through the Jacqueline Kennedy garden in the East Wing and being directed to a cocktail reception before dinner in the East Room, where tables were topped with towering centerpieces of cherry tree boughs in full bloom. On the menu: crabcakes, beef ribs and banana splits.
First lady Jill Biden, who oversaw planning for what will be the administration’s second state dinner, recruited Korean American celebrity chef Edward Lee to whip up a menu showcasing the “best of America” — but with Korean touches. Lee is known for putting a Korean twist on American food.
“It’s not traditional Korean food but just gives you a little hint of Korean flavors,” he said this week as the White House previewed the dinner setup.
The crabcake appetizer comes with a slaw of cabbage, kohlrabi, fennel and cucumber topped with a vinaigrette made using gochujang, a red chili paste and a bowl of chilled yellow squash soup. The braised beef short ribs, the main course, are topped with sorghum-glazed carrots and served on a dollop of grits made from butter beans instead of corn.
Dessert is a deconstructed banana split, an American classic, featuring lemon bar ice cream, caramelized bananas, fresh berries and mint ginger snap cookie crumble drizzled with a caramel sauce infused with doenjang, a fermented soybean paste.
Guests will be ushered to the State Dining Room at the other end of the State Floor after dinner to be entertained by performances from Broadway stars Salonga, Norm Lewis and Jessica Vosk.
Lewis, for all his experience, said he still gets nervous performing for big events.
“Oh God, always nerves,” he said. “But you know what? It’s for a good cause and I’m very excited to be here.”
A state visit, including an arrival ceremony on the South Lawn and a sparkly state dinner, is the highest diplomatic honor the U.S. bestows on its closest allies. Yoon was visiting as the U.S. and South Korea mark the 70th year of an alliance that began at the end of the Korean War and committed the U.S. to help South Korea defend itself, particularly from North Korea. Approximately 28,500 U.S. troops are currently based in South Korea.
Biden’s first invitation for a state visit went to France last year and President Emmanuel Macron was toasted at a black-tie dinner last December with more than 300 guests inside a heated pavilion erected on the south grounds of the White House.
Before Wednesday’s dinner, Jill Biden and her South Korean counterpart, Kim Keon Hee, toured a pair of exhibits of paintings by Mark Rothko at the National Gallery of Art, including one that will open to the public later this year.
Lee said his mother was the first person he told about his invitation to work with the White House kitchen staff. His mother is a Korean immigrant; he was born in Brooklyn, New York.
‘We’ve always felt this huge debt of gratitude to the United States of America for the opportunities that they’ve had, that I’ve been able to have,” Lee said. “So to come full circle, and to give back and be able to do this was, you know, a very proud moment for me and also for my mom.”
Her advice? “She just said, ‘Don’t mess it up.’”
