Auguste Julien

Auguste Julien was born around 1812 in Washington, D.C.¹ He was the son of Honoré Julien, a French immigrant who worked as a chef for presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, after which he opened a catering business and restaurant in Washington, D.C.² Auguste Julien followed in his father’s footsteps and ran a catering business in the District. As part of this job, Julien periodically cooked for the White House. The first known instance occurred on March 1, 1849 during the presidency of James K. Polk. Polk employed a full-time cook named Ben Stephenson at the White House, but contracted with Julien to cater for a large dinner held just before he left office.³ In his diary, Polk wrote: “The Dinner was finely gotten up in Julian’s (the French cook) best style. It passed off well.”⁴ It is unclear how frequently Julien cooked for Polk, but the president’s seeming familiarity with Julien’s cooking suggests he was often brought in for dinners or important events. 

After his stint working for Polk, Auguste continued to work in Washington, D.C. as a caterer and chef. The 1860 Census lists him as still living in the District and working as a “French chef.”⁵ 

Julien cooked again at the White House in 1861 under President Abraham Lincoln.⁶ Receipts filed by White House Gardener John Watt show that in the summer of 1861, Julien also received $67.50 for work done on the White House Grounds, though White House Gatekeeper James H. Upperman claimed Julien never performed any such work. Instead, the payments appear to be part of Watt’s fraud scheme in which he charged the government for work never performed or dramatically overcharged for actual work. It is unclear if Julien received the $67.50 or if Watt pocketed it himself.⁷ 

Currently, the only confirmed times in which Julien cooked at the White House are from Polk and Lincoln’s tenures, but it is likely he performed this work during the intervening years as well. 

Julien passed away in Washington, D.C., on August 12, 1863.⁸