President Trump is hosting Chinese President Xi Jinping for a formal state dinner Thursday, and the menu contains no red meat at all. The meal, released by First Lady Melania Trump’s office, is entirely pescatarian.
The first course is a yellow squash velouté with wild mushroom fricassée, crispy pancetta and scallion oil. According to the menu description, the dish is “gently blended to highlight its delicate seasonal flavors of earthy wild mushrooms, sautéed with fresh herbs,” with the pancetta adding “a savory and smoky contrast” and the scallion oil bringing “vibrance and a subtle allium brightness.”
The main course is sesame-crusted sea bass served with braised bok choy, roasted garden eggplant and a French green herb sauce. The menu says the sesame coating “creates a fragrant nutty crust while keeping the fish tender,” while the bok choy and eggplant bring “lightly caramelized flavors” and the herb sauce adds “brightness, acidity, and a garden character.”
Dessert closes out the meal with vanilla crémeux, White House honey ice cream, walnut frangipane and sour cherry confit. The First Lady’s office describes it as “a smooth vanilla crémeux with a vibrant sour cherry confit center, set atop a rich walnut frangipane,” finished with ice cream made from honey harvested from a beehive the First Lady installed on the White House South Lawn earlier this year.
Tenor Christopher Macchio, who performed at the Republican National Convention in Dallas, will entertain guests alongside military musicians from the Army and Marine Corps.
The evening’s décor leans on red, a color with deep significance in Chinese history, according to the First Lady’s office, which described “urns overflowing with red blossoms and tables covered by red linen with dahlias and ranunculus.”
The dinner is a departure from Trump’s own well-known fast-food order — two Big Macs, two Filet-O-Fish sandwiches and a large chocolate shake.
Following the dinner, both leaders are expected to retire for the night. On Friday, Trump will take Xi to the National Archives before Xi departs the United States in the mid-afternoon.
