Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Chef Defends NBC's Black History Month Menu
By
Jen Carlson
Published Feb 5, 2010
Modified Feb 5, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Carlson
Published Feb 5, 2010
Modified Feb 5, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
While it would be nice to blame NBC's Black History Month Menu-tastrophe on Jeff Zucker, the dishes offered yesterday (fried chicken, collard greens and black-eyed peas) were actually chosen by Leslie Calhoun... NBC's black chef.
Calhoun defended herself to the NY Post, saying, "All I wanted to do was make a meal that everyone would enjoy—and that I eat myself." But when ?uestlove showed up in the lunch line, he quickly Twittered the menu hanging up with the words, "Hmm, HR?"—a transmission that quickly spread via his 1MM+ followers. The chef says that yesterday the Roots drummer "requested the neck bone [cooked in] the black-eyed peas and fried chicken." But then she says he "got off the line, saying, 'This is racist.' The next thing you know, people were taking pictures of the sign and asking all the other black people in the cafeteria if this was racist. They said that it wasn't."
In the end the menu was removed, ?uestlove took some time off Twitter saying "now I must put out fire," and next week Calhoun plans to try again (her plan was to serve one special meal every Thursday during February). Meanwhile, last night Wanda Sykes addressed the menu on the Jay Leno Show, saying, "Jay, what is happening at NBC? Is the whole damn network on medical marijuana? What the hell is going on over here?"
Tagged
black history month
nbc
wanda sykes
?uestlove
menu
Leslie Calhoun
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Badly burned body found in a trashed and abandoned Jamaica Queens lot, NYPD says
The remains belonged to a man officials have yet to identify.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Published Oct 2, 2026 at 7:39 a.m. ET
Brooklyn DA brings back warrant-clearing event as quality-of-life tickets surge
The district attorney will host a warrant and ticket clearance event after the NYPD cracked down on quality-of-life infractions.
By
Ben Feuerherd
News
Brooklyn DA brings back warrant-clearing event as quality-of-life tickets surge
The district attorney will host a warrant and ticket clearance event after the NYPD cracked down on quality-of-life infractions.
By
Ben Feuerherd
Hochul names NY AG James as special prosecutor on alleged rape case at Cornell University
By
Jon Campbell
Founder of NYC LGBTQ therapy practice charged with rape after alleged sexual assaults
By
Giulia Heyward
US judge in NY indefinitely blocks ICE from making arrests at immigration courthouses
By
Arya Sundaram
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .