Kennedy in the White House and instead took a culinary development job with Howard Johnson's. During his career, he has served in numerous prestigious restaurants, first, in Paris, and then in America. He has authored more than 30 cookbooks, some of which have become best sellers.
From to , during his military service, he was recognized for his culinary training and skill and was ordered to work in the Office of the Treasury, where he met his long-time cooking partner, Jean-Claude Szurdak, and eventually became the personal chef to three French heads of state, including Charles de Gaulle.
McCully introduced him to Julia Child , who became a lifelong friend and collaborator. His career as a restaurant chef ended abruptly with a near fatal car accident in The use of thousands of photographs, illustrating the techniques and methods required to achieve certain culinary results, provided a window into the art of cooking.
The books are credited by chef Tom Colicchio and others as helping them to learn the craft of cooking. This effort eventually led to the first, and still one of the few, Master's degrees in Gastronomy.
Each of the three series earned the pair James Beard Foundation Awards. Throughout his career, he has toured and taught on cruise ships including the Queen Elizabeth 2 , and the Crystal Cruises and Princess Cruises lines.
