Which chef got a shout-out on ''West Wing''? | 18813__west_l
SAUCY! Spencer's aide may have been giving a nod to Lawson (inset)

All About

The West Wing

Q On the Sept. 25 ''West Wing,'' an aide to John Spencer's chief of staff calls her boss' fave TV cooking show ''soft porn,'' noting ''No one needs to massage garlic oil into a leg of lamb that much.'' Who's the hot dish?

A It ain't Emeril. There's some confusion at NBC, whose rep hinted it was comely cook Nigella Lawson of the Style Network's ''Nigella Bites,'' but later denied it. Regardless, Londoner Lawson -- a seasoned journalist whose dad was a top government official under Thatcher -- is flattered. ''I'm happy to be alluded to, if indeed I have been,'' she says of her favorite show. ''But what I'd love is a part.... Can there be no room for me in the press corps?''

(Send queries to BurningQuestions@ew.com.)


Sign up for EW.com's The 25 newsletter!

Stay in the know and get EW.com's top 5 stories, 5 days a week (sent weekday afternoons).