Michelle Obama is coming to the East Bay and Alice hosts

June 7, 2011 9:17 am by Frances Dinkelspiel

First Lady Michelle Obama is coming the East Bay. Photo: The White House

Alice Waters is going to be doing a lot of cooking when First Lady Michelle Obama comes to the East Bay next week.

So far, Waters has signed up to do two breakfasts on June 14 to help Obama raise funds for the president’s reelection campaign.  When supporters gather early in the morning at the Golden State Warriors’ practice arena in Oakland and then at 8:45 am at the Claremont Hotel, they will get “A Locally Produced Breakfast by Alice Waters and Friends,” according to the email invitations that were sent on Monday.

Not that it will be a small gathering. Both facilities are large.

Tickets to see the First Lady range from $1,000 for general seating at the Claremont to $5,000 for the photo reception to $25,000 to be a “co-host.”

Alice Waters will be cooking when hte First Lady comes to the Bay Area

Waters is a big supporter of Obama’s efforts to get kids to eat well and to move.

“Her [Obama's] dedication to children’s healthy eating has been an inspiration to all of us here at Chez Panisse, and we are enthusiastic supporters of her ‘Let’s Move’ campaign,” Waters wrote in the invitation for the event at the Warriors’ facility, according to The Bay Citizen. “The menu will be a celebration of these ideals, featuring organic ingredients from local farmers and purveyors around the Bay Area — including garlic toast from Acme Bread‘s very first Edible Schoolyard loaf!”

Details about Obama’s visit have been scarce, but the Chronicle reported recently that she will also attend a luncheon in San Francisco.

That’s a lot of eating.

34 Comments

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  • Andy

    *ahem… Attention Berkeley headline writers. the first lady is not coming to the “East Bay”.. she is coming to two events in..OAKLAND…. Come on ..you can say it… I know you can.. not East Bay.. and *gasp not Berkeley… Nope she will be in..  say it with me now.. OAKLAND . There. That wasn’t so hard was it?

  • Get Listed

    @andy – Claremont Hotel is in Berkeley, brainiac

  • Mike Farrell

    When did you get off the boat?

  • GPO

    Caviar Communists of the world unite, all you have to lose are your $25,000 photo ops.

  • easy, pard

    “The main hotel building is entirely in Oakland. However, the southwestern corner of the property owned by the resort falls within the city limits of Berkeley.”

  • Anonymous

    But enough to give it a Berkeley address (41 Tunnel Road, Berkeley) so a win on a technicality, no?

  • http://www.davosnewbies.com lknobel

    The location of the Claremont crops up regularly on Berkeleyside. We’ve decided from the start to include it as a Berkeley location because of the address. We know its taxes go to Oakland. 

  • susie

    wish I could swing even the $1000 ticket.

  • Wondering

    I’m confused. Why would anyone pay anything, let alone a grand to see this person?
    Who pays for the security that will be demanded for the woman? Fat waste of resources. Who pays for her travel? What is all the money collected going to fund? It’s hard to take Michelle’s supposed efforts to have kids eat well when her husband has been expanding, and deregulating the farming of GMO’s, and the use of exceptionally toxic pesticides. Her little scene seems more of a diversion from what’s really happening than anything even close to sincere.

  • Laurammenard

    Michelle was the keynote speaker for the West Point graduation banquet, my nephew was a graduating cadet.  My sister and immediate family attended the banquet. Michelle was very well received, most people I spoke with at the graduation commented on her skills at  public speaking and that she seemed very sincere and authentic.This despite her imposing physique (even the cadets joked she could take down any threat ) and her heavy use of mascara. This is the first time a first lady spoke at West Point, she has created an initiative to support military families,  a noble
    effort.

  • Anonymous

    Wasn’t Ms. Waters that inspired the White House garden?

  • Wondering

    Never mind on the question about where the money’s going. I reread the article.

  • Caviar Communist

    The same people who paid for Nancy Reagan’s Just Say No appearances and Laura Bush’s literacy appearances.

    I am more concerned that this will interfere with the 6:15 yoga class at the Claremont Club.

  • Mike Farrell

    The portion in pink is the City of  Berkeley; the aerial photo is Oakland.
    Make up whatever facts you like. It seems to be the rage these days.

  • Anonymous

    School gardens have been around since long before Alice Waters introduced them in Berkeley.  Kitchen gardens, including White House gardens, are not new and certainly not the invention of Alice Waters.  I am steadily amazed by how many folks in Berkeley seem to deify Ms. Waters.  The world cannot grow enough food to eat the way she proselytizes but she is seen as being all about good eating, organic food and lots of stuff she did not actually invent. She sure didn’t invent gardens adjacent to great houses.

  • http://caviarcommunism.wordpress.com/about/ West Bezerkeley

    Isn’t this story an ironic twist for a guy like me that rails against the Caviar Communists? A President that my household supports needs Caviar Communist dollars to fill up an election war chest for the 2012 campaign.

    It’s sickening the amount of money that is needed to run an effective campaign. I should just come to terms with the fact that Republican or Democrat, it’s the wealthy conservatives & wealthy caviar communists that control who gets into office. Meanwhile, the hard working saps that, don’t have a cool $25K to buy connections, get to foot the tax bill for the policies implemented when post-election favors are called in.

    Our election system puts obscene amounts of cash into the pockets of big business & the grotesquely wealthy to the detriment of the entire country. How depressing!

  • http://caviarcommunism.wordpress.com/about/ West Bezerkeley

    Isn’t this story an ironic twist for a guy like me that rails against the Caviar Communists? A President that my household supports needs Caviar Communist dollars to fill up an election war chest for the 2012 campaign.

    It’s sickening the amount of money that is needed to run an effective campaign. I should just come to terms with the fact that Republican or Democrat, it’s the wealthy conservatives & wealthy caviar communists that control who gets into office. Meanwhile, the hard working saps that, don’t have a cool $25K to buy connections, get to foot the tax bill for the policies implemented when post-election favors are called in.

    Our election system puts obscene amounts of cash into the pockets of big business & the grotesquely wealthy to the detriment of the entire country. How depressing!

  • DC

    what a silly phrase – caviar communists.  I give points for alliteration, but deducts for the OTT silliness of it.  Points for geographical consistency (caviar does come from Russia after all), but deducts for no capitalization of the plural noun.  All in all it’s one of those phrases that sounds cool – and you can tell by how often this poster uses it – but doesn’t mean much.

    Can I start lobbying now for dosa democrats, ranch dressing republicans, en papillote peace and freedom party people or sloppy joe socialists?

  • http://caviarcommunism.wordpress.com/ West Bezerkeley
  • Anonymous

    To: Alice Waters:  Talk to her very quietly, though I deeply doubt any such conversation will ever take place in full honesty.  Tell her to sit down and talk to her husband about the reality that he has *lost* the progressive vote and the left in America and cannot and will not win them back until and unless he starts acting and behaving with courage and vision vs. pretty speeches and poses that go nowhere.  We have lost our homes, our futures and in many cases our communities.  Put people back to work!  A jobless recovery is just that i.e. more fat cats at the trough as this upcoming election is shaping up to be all over again.  It’s real simple, “Money must stay in motion”.  It’s the first rule of economics.  Without that reality we cannot afford to have dinner nor lunch at your restaurant nor any others at this time.  How tragic and how wickedly ironic all at the same time.  An African America president sans courage or leadership.  

  • GPO

    Sorry if the phrase annoys or rankles.  I was using it ironically, not seriously, of course.  I guess I am old enough to remember both real American communists as family members and colleagues and also real, principled leftwing activists who really believed in mass redistribution of wealth.  At least some of these leftwing artists and intellectuals were sincere and lived a very modest, “working class” lifestyle.  They would regard it as beyond obscene to hobnob with a “progressive” President at the tune of $1,000 + for lunch at a once racially and certainly still snobbish and socially exclusive country club.

  • In a different light

    She was one of the centers out from which radiated the energy for more school gardens, a catalyst.  Added to that, she did the work, and was able, due to the Chez Panisse Foundation, to direct in the creation of the King School garden and to continue spreading the healthy diet idea.  The time was right for this idea, or “meme”, to spread.  Invention and deification are not part of the story.  And to prepare lunch, with her helpers, for the fundraiser with Michelle Obama is a natural outcome.  Finally, the small garden and small farming idea would allow for enough for everyone to eat.  We have the answers but sometimes, as a culture, it’s hard to listen.

  • http://www.webhamster.com/ The Sharkey

    Perhaps if he had actually made good on more of his campaign promises and not alienated his left-wing base by continuing and escalating wars, he might not face so much of a challenge in 2012?

    Just a thought.

  • http://www.webhamster.com/ The Sharkey

    I look forward to more posts in your blog!

  • http://caviarcommunism.wordpress.com/ West Bezerkeley

    I’ve had this conversation with friends and family and the conclusion we always come to is that it is hard for a President to usher in change when his own party was uncooperative for 2 years.

    Yes, a few things got done, but his party squandered a 2 year super majority and a chance to dramatically shift the course of this country for decades to come. Now it’ll be years, perhaps decades before a similar opportunity presents itself again.

  • http://www.webhamster.com/ The Sharkey

    I agree, but Obama could have done more to shame the Democrats into finally doing some of the things they’ve been promising for decades instead of just pussyfooting around and then passing a health care reform bill that was virtually identical to what Republican John McCain proposed.

    I’ll still be voting for Obama because the only Republican candidate I like has absolutely zero chance of winning the nomination, but I won’t be happy about casting that vote at all.

  • Ann Coulter

    she  actually  cancelled  the  claremont  event……..it  was  moved to the  4  seasons in SF on Tue 

  • Ann Coulter

    the  claremont  pays  oakland  taxes  ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,bezerkeley  is  just  the  address 

  • Ann Coulter

    obama  a  man of the  people?  2, 500 to attend  the  Michelle  breakfast  and  25K to attend  the  photo op hmm a  bit  elitist isn’t  it …and  where  are  all of  the berkeley war  protestors?  zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
    quiet  as  a  church  mouse  

  • Ann Coulter

    obama  is  toast  in  2012  bye  bye enigma 

  • Ann Coulter

    alice= numero uno space  kadet  of  the  local  culinary ilk 

  • Ann Coulter

    this  even at  the  claremont  was  cancelled for  tuesday…it was  moved to the  4  seasons  in SF 

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_RJICBZR44LKRKAQHKQPTG26YUY John

    No. The address is actually in a real estate office a few doors down.

  • Mike Farrell

    “41 Tunnel Rd” is an undeveloped lot at the far southern tip of the Claremont Hotel property. It is zoned R-1H, Low density Residential.

    The real estate office on the SE corner of Ashby/Domingo has a more interesting history; it was the real estate office of Berkeley native Jay Ward. Ward was the creator and producer of the Rocky and Bullwinkle show, Crusader Rabbit and many more.