Here at Eat Out, we are dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. We leave no stone-ground flour unturned in our search for the most delicious pizza; no chilli popper un-sampled. If, by chance, we should discover a market, a restaurant or a pop-up burger joint we haven’t visited, operatives are dispatched on urgent reconnaissance missions to sample, sip, and spy on the establishment in question. Through all of this we strive to answer some tough questions: are there restaurants with great views in Johannesburg? Is it possible to eat out without putting on the pounds? What on earth can we cook for guests coming over in 15 minutes?

We recently took a little time out from all this rigorous research to investigate some things that have been plaguing us: what is Ryan Gosling’s favourite food? Has Gangnam style had an effect on world food trends? And what, pray tell, is on the menu at the pope’s banquets?

Since you asked, calamari is reportedly Ryan's favourite dish, lightly fried and drizzled with lemon juice. The Drive actor co-owns a restaurant in LA called Tagine, and reputedly is obsessed with sweets.

His girlfriend, Eva Mendes, meanwhile, loves bread, according to this first-rate piece of journalism.

Marilyn Monroe famously loved steak, but reportedly wasn’t much of a chef. The story goes that she liked cooking peas and carrots because of the colour combination.

Over at the White House, Barack Obama’s favourite dish is purported to be beef chilli; The Huffington Post even ran his private family recipe. The presidential chilli appears to be fairly simple – the usual mix of onion, garlic, cumin, kidney beans and chilli powder – with the interesting addition of red wine vinegar.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg served Mexican food at his wedding, and apparently eats largely vegetarian food after undertaking a mission to better understand where his food comes from. He shocked his million-odd Facebook friends in 2011 by updating his status to read, “I just killed a pig and a goat”.  Says Mark, “I don’t have an issue with anything people choose to eat, but I do think they should take responsibility and be thankful for what they eat rather than trying to ignore where it came from.” A noble goal, we reckon.

From internet royalty to the real deal: Duchess Kate reputedly does a lot of her own cooking, including making wors with her very own sausage-maker. She also gives homemade jam and plum preserves to family and friends. The Duchess’s hubby, William, loves pizza, pasta, poached eggs and, oddly, banana flan, according to Darren McGrady, who cooked for Diana, William and Harry in the nineties.

Recent newsmaker Pope Benedict XVI’s culinary predilections are less well publicised, though Serious Eats revealed one menu prepared for the former pope during his reign. White and green asparagus salad, beef goulash and chocolate hazelnut cake make the list, and the former pope thrilled chef Lidia Bastianich by telling her, "These are my mother's flavours." Pope Benedict’s predecessor, John Paul II, was so fond of Polish cream cake that the dessert has since been renamed in his honour.

Korean pop prince Psy’s favourite foods are harder to come by, but the Gangnam Style singer triggered a sudden run on Korean ingredients in British supermarkets, thanks to his viral hit, according to the Sun. British supermarket Tesco claims sales of its recently launched Korean range of products doubled since the advent of Gangnam Style. The singer has also spawned not one but three restaurants: one in Koreatown; a Gangnam chicken joint, complete with really great dancing chicken logo; and a New York food cart.

George W Bush famously declared his hatred for broccoli, but the former US president apparently loves cheeseburger pizzas, “because every ingredient of a cheeseburger is on top of a margherita pizza.” Logic like that is hard to argue with.

A little closer to home, President Jacob Zuma was asked by his two daughters at his 70th birthday party about his favourite foods. He replied nyama (meat) and that his favourite chocolate is the one his daughters buy him – “One Bar”, which earned him a laugh from the crowds at the ICC.

Western Cape Premier Helen Zille, meanwhile, has said that she enjoys exotic meals like Thai curries, and that she loves salomies, which are flat breads rolled around curried filling.

Do you have a pressing food questions? Let us know on Facebook.

By Katharine Jacobs
Photographs: GabboT, Mike Saechana, Dong Hun Lee, Ernesto Andrade, Iowapolics.com on Flickr, Avlxyz, Mike Saechana and Bob B Brown.