RIVER CITY JOURNAL: WHEN DINING BECOMES ART, WHAT, EXACTLY, DO YOU EAT?

The answer came Wednesday at the Governor's Mansion: Admire the food, say something nice -- and then dig in.

Once again, the governor of the great state of Missouri has delivered his State of the State address before a joint session of the General Assembly. And, once again, yours truly was among newspaper editors invited to the governor's house for lunch right after all the hoopla in the Capitol.

As required by law (I just made that up), I am herewith submitting my official report to you, the readers of this newspaper. As you may recall from some of my previous lunch-with-the-governor reports, I am most interested in the lunch itself, while others look for kernels of news in the governor's off-the-cuff remarks.

I can tell you that our current governor, Mel Carnahan, is one of the most forthright governors I've ever dealt with in Missouri. I've been going to these lunches off and on since the Bond years. Mr. Carnahan is a good host and relaxed conversationalist, and he gives unequivocating answers to any question put before him by folks whose business it is to ask hard-hitting questions.

(Let me get one other piece of business out of the way: Many of you, mostly women, would like to know what Jean Carnahan, the first lady, was wearing, how her hair was done up and what kind of jewelry she had on. I'm sorry. I am totally inept in this department, other than to say that I doubt anyone has ever felt like a stranger in Mrs. Carnahan's presence, thanks to her easy-going and gracious style.)

Now. Let me report to you what you aren't likely to read anywhere else.

First, the Governor's Mansion.

I continue to be favorably impressed with the house, which has been beautifully restored and serves the governor's family and citizens of this state admirably. The house was, the governor mentioned, one of three executive mansions featured in the A&E television series on America's castles, and the mansion in Jefferson City did us proud.

One new addition to the main-floor public rooms ("We're never down here unless we have company," the governor said) is a beautiful gold harp, which was donated to the mansion in the past year. Homes of the era in which the house was constructed often had harps, mostly for display. This one actually works, although there was no harpist on hand for lunch.

And here's an update on Mrs. Carnahan's book project. As I told you last year, she has been compiling a book on the history of the Governor's Mansion, focusing on its occupants over the years and the historical setting in which they lived as the state's first family. The book has been completed, and if all goes well it should be printed and ready for distribution sometime this summer. From what I've heard so far, I'd make plans now to buy a copy when it comes out.

OK. The meal.

The Governor's Mansion can be quite a showcase for the culinary arts, what with its high-ceiling dining room complete with fireplace (gas logs were cheerily blazing for lunch on this brisk January day).

The meal started with what Mrs. Carnahan identified as corn chowder. But the soup, warm and spicy, had been given a south-of-the-border flair, which made it more colorful (hues of orange) set off by red tortilla chips and bright-green chives.

There was no salad this year, not that anyone missed it, thanks in large part to what was about to follow.

The main course was a work of art. My dining companions didn't know whether to eat it or photograph it. I would have done both, if I had had a camera along. It featured what I guessed was trout baked in a crust of walnuts across the edge of the plate nearest to me. Right above the fish were two bundles of julienned green beans and a carrot sculpture. At the back of the plate was an exotic arrangement of piped mashed potatoes serving as an anchor for a thin, lengthwise slice of toasted potato which had been imprinted with the delicate silhouette of a flower. Springing from the mashed potatoes was a fountain of green-onion tops.

You know what? It was tasty as well as pleasing to the eye.

As you might expect, desserts at this kind of do are to be anticipated with gusto. No diets on State of the State day. I have never been disappointed by a Governor's Mansion dessert. But I think even these hard-crusted journalists, who don't like to show emotion for fear of letting those feelings color their reporting, were wowed by what came into the dining room next.

It was a large dessert cart -- it took two men to lug it around -- with two shelves laden with treats that would make anyone swoon. There were four choices, including a creme fraiche concoction, a chocolate cheesecake and a berry torte. I chose the fresh fruit (kiwi, mango, strawberries, raspberries and blueberries) in a baked-phyllo shell topped with a couple of dollops of raspberry sauce.

Over the years, I have had the privilege of dining in some pretty exotic settings, eating meals prepared by renowned chefs whose reputations were exceedingly great. But I can honestly report to you that I have never seen a more visually sumptuous meal than the one served Wednesday in the Governor's Mansion.

Just one small comment about the serving staff in the mansion dining room: As I've told you before, these fellows, decked out to look like butlers, are inmates at the state prison down the street. For several years the faces remained familiar. This year it looked like a whole new crew. I surmise that some of the old standbys completed their sentences or were paroled, pardoned or reprieved. The new fellow assigned to the governor's end of the table showed a bit of jitters, his hand shaking as he set the corn chowder in front of our state's chief executive. But he grew calmer as the meal went on. Thankfully.

In addition to Governor and Mrs. Carnahan, one of their sons and a daughter joined the other guests around the table, so the setting was much like a family dinner. They're a good-looking family, the Carnahans, and it was a pleasure to be in their company for a couple of hours over tasty and exciting fare.

A few members of the governor's staff were there too, but the conversation mostly was between the governor and the newspaper folks who had questions about aspects of proposed state spending for the next fiscal year.

By the way, I'll remind you one more time that the Governor's Mansion can be toured. If you're in Jefferson City, call ahead to see about a walk-through. You'll be glad you did.

~R. Joe Sullivan is the editor of the Southeast Missourian.