Donald Trump’s culinary tastes are known to range from KFC and taco bowls to well-done steaks. At the famous 21 Club in New York, known for its rack of lamb and Rohan duck, Trump goes with the house hamburger — well done, of course.

Despite owning more than a dozen luxury restaurants, Trump is, by all accounts, not all that interested in food. But the elevated role of White House chef — paired with the growing food policy debate that has been front and center in the current administration — has the culinary world buzzing about who Trump will bring in and what it might mean for the food landscape.

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Historically, first ladies have made many of the decisions about food at the White House, but there are some indications that Trump’s daughter Ivanka, who said in a statement last week that she would take a leave of absence from her executive positions at the Trump Organization and her own business, could play a big role in promoting nutrition and cultivating the culinary image of the new administration.

A source close to Ivanka confirmed that the influential first daughter is coming to Washington with an interest in children’s nutrition. “While there are no specific plans, Ivanka is very passionate about gardening and teaching kids about healthy, seasonal eating,” the source said.

Last summer, Ivanka Instagrammed a picture of herself and her children harvesting cucumbers and eggplant at a family property in New Jersey, writing: “There are few things better than spending a hot summer evening in the garden with these next gen green thumbs!” Her account is full of food and health tips, like how to make homemade granola and how to “Turnip your vegetable game.”

“What I’m hoping is that Ivanka does have a big effect on her father,” said Tom Colicchio, a chef and food policy advocate best known as the lead judge on “Top Chef.”

Colicchio, who stumped for Hillary Clinton during the campaign, noted that Ivanka is personally very interested in healthy eating and gardening — something that gives advocates some hope as they worry the fast-food loving president-elect might bulldoze the garden on the South Lawn or scrap the school lunch overhaul championed by Michelle Obama.

The role of food in the modern White House should not be underestimated when it comes to culture, and, at least in the current administration, policy. The Obamas were, by all accounts, foodies. They ate at trendy restaurants like Rose’s Luxury in Washington and Nobu in Honolulu when they dined out, which was often. The White House started brewing beer and even keeping bees. On the policy front, the Obama administration pushed a sweeping healthy eating agenda, banning trans fat and cutting salt and sugar from the American diet. Michelle Obama made tackling childhood obesity her signature issue.

The Obamas' friend and personal chef, Sam Kass, became a celebrity in his own right in the food world, promoting farm-to-table and nutrition policies as his role expanded at the White House, from assistant chef to senior policy adviser. Past White House chefs, whether they cooked for the Kennedys, Reagans or Clintons, always reflected the president and first lady’s style and tastes, but tended to steer clear of the farm bill.

Kass, who left the White House in 2014, said he sees nutrition as very compatible with Ivanka’s women’s empowerment platform.

“One of the absolute core pillars of healthy families and women thriving is health and nutrition,” Kass said. “One would think that would be a component of any strategy for women and kids thriving.”

Melania Trump reportedly has a personal chef, as does Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, but it’s not yet clear if any of the family’s staff will jump to the White House. Kass famously helped the Obamas eat healthier as a family in Chicago before joining them in the White House.

In addition to the role of personal chef, there has been some speculation that Trump might make changes in the White House kitchen, perhaps even naming a new executive chef — the post responsible for state dinners and other official events — possibly bringing in someone from Trump Tower, Mar-a-Lago or one of his golf courses. The top job is currently held by Cristeta Comerford, a highly-praised chef who’s served under both George W. Bush and Obama for the past decade.

While there’s been no official word on the Trumps' plans — and no sign that it’s a priority for the president-elect — there are a couple of chefs considered possibilities for that role, including Joe Isidori, chef and owner of Black Tap Craft Burgers & Beer in New York. Isidori has worked for Trump for several years, launching restaurants at Trump properties and golf clubs, from New Jersey to Las Vegas. He earned a coveted Michelin star while working for Trump in 2008.

A spokesperson for Isidori said the chef is “flattered to be included in conversations regarding the position, but there have not been any further discussions about this.”

David Burke of BLT Prime has also come up as a possibility. Burke, who’s reportedly known Trump since the late 1980s, was one of the chefs who stepped in after Jose Andres and Geoffrey Zakarian famously backed out of the Trump Hotel over Trump’s incendiary comments about Mexicans. Trump sued both chefs and remains locked in litigation. The president-elect was deposed earlier this month after settlement talks with Jose Andres fell apart.

A spokesperson for Burke said it was just “a rumor” that he’s potentially in the running for the White House post and declined to comment further. Burke did, however, applaud the work Michelle Obama has done on food and nutrition, saying it “shows her passion for nutrition, health and education through food. I hope the work continues with the new First Family.”

There’s a strong possibility, however, that the Trumps will keep Comerford at the helm of the White House kitchen and leave the staff as is. The Filipino American chef, who’s executed well over a dozen state dinners, has been consistently raved about. Susan Morrison, the White House executive pastry chef, has also been widely praised. Both Comerford and Morrison are the first women to hold their titles.

“He has two of the finest chefs in the world for serving banquet style dinner,” said Eddie Gehman Kohan, a writer who’s closely tracked the Obamas and is working on a book on the culinary history of the White House. Gehman Kohan noted that the White House kitchen is ridiculously small compared to the scale of events it serves and the logistics are extremely complicated. “They’re incredibly creative in producing culinary events that dazzle the guests within the confines of a tiny kitchen, incredible time constraints, and guest preferences.”

Melania, who reportedly isn’t moving into the White House until this summer at the earliest, has given very few hints about her tastes, but the former model, in an interview touting her caviar-laden skincare line, once extolled the benefits of eating a diet “full of fruits and vegetables and rich in antioxidants.”

Ivanka, on the other hand, is vocal about her diet, which is seamlessly tied to her lifestyle brand. She’s said to eat lots of greens while limiting carbs and processed foods. She gives her kids goji berries and flaxseeds for their oatmeal.

Trump, for his part, has sent decidedly mixed messages about his preferences. His fast-food tweets have made headlines, but he also likes to be seen at high-end restaurants like Jean Georges in the Trump International Hotel in New York, where he recently met with Mitt Romney over a $600 dinner. His Mar-a-Lago club, meanwhile, is known for its lavish seafood buffets and pie that Oprah Winfrey raves about.

During the campaign, Trump appeared to play up his fast food bonafides to appeal to the everyman.

"I always say that we're blue-collar Americans who've been very blessed by success," Donald Trump Jr. told The Washington Post last year. "My dad isn't the type who puts on a tuxedo and eats caviar. He's a burgers-and-pizza kind of guy."

Trump’s fast food image has fueled some snark in culinary circles. Asked about which chef Trump might hire, a Washington restaurant investor quipped that it would probably be Colonel Sanders — a choice, they said, that would bridge “his love of military leaders and fast food.”

A decade before he ran for president, however, Trump catered a completely different image. In his 2004 book, “Think Like a Billionaire,” Trump advised his readers to “always remember: You are what you eat.” He also outlined what he called the “Mar-a-Lago Diet,” which lists mostly whole foods like tilapia, steamed vegetables and egg white-omelets.

“If I didn’t adhere to it from time to time, my waistline would be an absolute disaster,” he wrote. He also says in the book that he enjoys yellow-heirloom tomato gazpacho with summer squash and lingonberry sorbet, along with strip steak and Caesar salads.

“I think the interesting part is that we really don’t have any idea as far as food is concerned,” said Spike Mendelsohn, a prominent Washington chef and restaurateur, whose burger joint on Capitol Hill was a particular favorite of the Obamas (both Barack and Michelle have their own burgers on the menu).

“I don’t think he’ll be as adventurous with his palate,” said Mendelsohn. “But I also think the first couple years they’re going to keep pretty busy with everything else going on.”

Suzy Evans, a literary agent who chronicles presidential culinary history at The History Chef, predicts that Trump will bring his signature extravagant style to the White House kitchen.

“I expect that Trump will quickly establish his own unique culinary stamp at the White House,” Evans said. “While he has been known to snack on Kentucky Fried Chicken, McDonald's and other fast foods, my hunch is that the Trumps will introduce a level of culinary opulence and abundance that the White House hasn’t seen in decades.”