US President Joe Biden carries an ice cream cone as he leaves Jeni’s Ice Cream in Washington, DC, on January 25, 2022.
SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images
Presidents of the United States have had some eccentric choices for favorite foods.
From squirrel stew to cheeseburger pizza, these commanders-in-chief didn’t let their time in office change their tastes.
Here are the favorite foods of all 46 presidents.
Presidents have hundreds of staff members to cater to their every whim during their time in the White House.
Though the Executive Mansion hosts some of the country’s most exclusive and upscale dinners, each president has different tastes for everyday fuel.
The recorded favorites of each president seem to stem from choices made by first ladies, food trends at the time, and comfort food to stay consistent through a rocky administration.
From squirrel stew to cheeseburger pizza, here are all 46 presidents’ favorite treats:
VCG Wilson/Corbis via Getty Images, Found Image Holdings/Corbis via Getty Images
The first president loved hoecakes topped with honey, an early version of an American breakfast classic that originated as a Native American recipe.
Stock Montage/Stock Montage/Getty Images, Carl D. Walsh/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images
Adams picked up the habit of drinking a morning “gill” of hard cider while attending Harvard and later wrote that he would “… never forget how refreshing and salubrious” he found the beverage in college.
GraphicaArtis/Getty Images, Deb Lindsey For The Washington Post via Getty Images
Jefferson discovered macaroni during his European travels and is credited with popularizing the food in the US after he brought a machine for making the pasta back from Naples, Italy.
GraphicaArtis/Getty Images, Kris Connor/Getty Images for NYCWFF
While it’s hard to pin down one favorite food for Madison, first lady Dolley Madison popularized the frozen treat during her time in the White House and the president was one of its top consumers.
Photo12/UIG/Getty Images, Scott Suchman/For the Washington Post
Monroe stayed true to his native Virginia by snacking on spoon bread, which is similar to a bread pudding.
Stock Montage/Getty Images, Herb Swanson/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images
Adams is credited with a simple and healthy favorite of fresh fruit.
Stock Montage/Getty Images, Dayna Smith/for the Washington Post
Jackson’s favorite dish has nothing to do with sturdy pants but is a term for green beans cooked with bacon.
Hulton Archive/Getty Images, George Rose/Getty Images
The half-shell snack was just one of van Buren’s favorite foods, in addition to doughnuts, raisins, figs, and meat.
VCG Wilson/Corbis via Getty Images, Muhammed Enes Yldrm/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Harrison’s proclivity for nature might have contributed to his taste for squirrel, which was a common protein at the time in a variety of dishes.
Stock Montage/Stock Montage/Getty Images, Ben McCanna/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images
This cozy dish with spice and ice cream is similar to popular English desserts flavored with raisins and currants.
Universal History Archive/Getty Images, Deb Lindsey For The Washington Post via Getty Images
Cornbread was a tribute to Polk’s Tennessee roots during his time in the White House, much of which was spent entertaining alongside his wife, Sarah.
Stock Montage/Getty Images, Jeffrey Greenberg/UIG via Getty Images
Taylor’s taste for Southern and Creole food led him to calas, which are similar to the treats consisting of fried dough covered in powdered sugar now known as beignets.
Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images, Klaus-Dietmar Gabbert/picture alliance via Getty Images
Fillmore was a fan of hearty foods, including beef stew, mock turtle soup, fish, ham with macaroni, duck, chicken, pigeon, and larded sweetbreads.
Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images, Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Pierce’s taste in food was true to his New England roots and included fried clams, clam chowder, and apple pie.
Charles Krupa/AP, Bettmann/Getty Images
Buchanan had a taste for finer cuisine, including French dishes that had just arrived in America. However, he also counted cabbage among his consistent favorites.
Stock Montage/Getty Images, Pontus Johansson/Getty Images
Lincoln also cited gingerbread cookies among one of his closely held favorites, but was a reliably hearty eater and fond of bacon.
PhotoQuest/Getty Images, Jonathan Wiggs/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Southerner Johnson’s comfort-food favorite is made with black-eyed peas, rice, chopped onion, sliced bacon, and salt.
Stock Montage/Getty Images, Deb Lindsey For The Washington Post via Getty Images
Ulysses S. Grant kept things simple with his favorite — rice pudding.
National Archives/Newsmakers, Spencer Weiner/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Hayes enjoyed this simple but hearty dish during his presidency and his wife’s recipe for these Civil War-era pancakes has been preserved for diners of today.
Brady-Handy/Epics/Getty Images, Muhammed Enes Yldrm/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Garfield was the second president to count squirrel as one of his favorite meals, which is nearly unheard of today.
Bettmann / Contributor via Getty Images, Roberto Machado Noa/LightRocket via Getty Images
Arthur’s meal of choice matched his facial hair style, as both were known as mutton chops.
Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images, Natasha Breen/REDA&CO/UIG via Getty Images
Cleveland was a bachelor when he entered the White House in 1884 and told a friend he wished he could pass up the luxurious meals for “a pickled herring, a Swiss cheese, and a chop instead of the French stuff.”
Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images, Getty Images
Harrison’s beginnings in Ohio and Indiana put him in the middle of the country’s main corn production region and shaped his favorite foods for years to come.
Hulton Archive/Getty Images, Natasha Breen/REDA&CO/UIG via Getty Images
It was written that McKinley and his wife were simple but hearty eaters, and “liked plain food, in substantial quantities.”
Hulton Archive/Getty Images, Dixie D. Vereen/For The Washington Post via Getty Images
Roosevelt was an adventurous eater and ate as one would expect a hunter would, counting wild game and steak among his favorites.
MPI/Getty Images, DeAgostini/Getty Images
Taft, who came to be known as the heaviest US president in history, was a hearty and classic eater, relying on favorite staples of steak and potatoes.
Stock Montage/Getty Images, Deb Lindsey for The Washington Post via Getty Images
Wilson was a simple eater, and the only stand-out favorite a former housekeeper could recall beyond classic breakfast foods was chicken salad.
Topical Press Agency/Getty Images, Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post via Getty Images
Harding’s rollercoaster presidency might have pushed him toward the comfort-food favorite of a chicken pot pie that points back to his roots in the Midwest.
Mansell/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images, Roberto Machado Noa/LightRocket via Getty Images
Coolidge was a casual but adventurous eater, counting Vermont country pickles, Mrs. Coolidge’s Chicken Chop Suey, chicken chow mein, and apple pie made with pork among his favorite recipes.
Universal History Archive/Getty Images, Richard Drew/AP
Hoover’s favorite has stood the test of time, as sweet potatoes topped with marshmallows can still be found on dinner tables across the country come Thanksgiving.
Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images, Nathan Congleton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
According to Henrietta Nesbitt, Roosevelt’s White House housekeeper, FDR loved grilled cheese sandwiches in addition to other classic American foods, including scrambled eggs, fish chowder, hot dogs, and fruitcake.
Bettmann/Getty Images, Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune/TNS via Getty Images
Truman was specific that his steak was to be cooked well-done.
Bettmann/Getty, Deb Lindsey for The Washington Post via Getty Images
Though Eisenhower liked cooking as a stress-reliever, he didn’t mind Mamie’s Million Dollar Fudge made for him with chocolate, marshmallow, and nuts.
Hank Walker/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images, Jeffrey Greenberg/UIG via Getty Images
Kennedy ate like a true New Englander, preferring the creamy clam chowder to Manhattan-style tomato based.
Bettmann/Getty Images, Kirk McKoy/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
In addition to Mexican food, corn bread, and grits, Texan Johnson tucked into hearty chicken-fried steak.
Keystone/Getty Images, Bart Ah You/Modesto Bee/MCT via Getty Images
Nixon’s unusual favorite of cottage cheese and ketchup would raise eyebrows any time of day, but the president especially liked it for breakfast.
AP Photo/Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images
Ford would follow his classic American dinner of choice with butter pecan ice cream.
Hulton Archive/Getty Images, Kirk McKoy/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Though he was known for his background in farming peanuts, Carter stuck to the Southern favorite, which also served as the family dog’s name.
Bob Galbraith/AP, Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images
Reagan was obsessed with the colorful snack, and at one point reportedly ordered more than 300,000 to be placed around the Capitol, White House, and other federal buildings each month.
Michael L. Abramson/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images, Kate Patterson for The Washington Post via Getty Images
The president reportedly caused sales of the snack to skyrocket while he was on the campaign trail and identified them as his favorite, particularly when they were topped with Tabasco.
Joe Sohm/Visions of America/UIG via Getty Images, Lane Turner/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Clinton chased his favorite fast foods including jalapeno cheeseburgers, chicken enchiladas, barbecue, cinnamon rolls, and pies on the presidential campaign trail, years before he would experiment with veganism for his health.
Al Behrman/AP, Wendy Maeda/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Former White House Chef Cristeta Comerford told reporters after the president left office that Bush loved what staff called “home-made ‘cheeseburger pizzas’ because every ingredient of a cheeseburger is on top of a margherita pizza.”
Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP, Leonard Ortiz/Digital First Media/Orange County Register via Getty Images
The former president told comedian Jerry Seinfeld that nachos were one of his greatest vices.
“That’s one of those where I have to have it taken away,” Obama said. “I’ll have guacamole coming out of my eyeballs.”
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images, Cate Gillon/Getty Images
Trump has a well-documented affection for fast food. From serving it in the White House to getting it delivered to his private plane, the president has said Burger King and McDonald’s are among his favorites because they promise a standard of cleanliness that’s hard to verify at other restaurants.
Samuel Corum/Getty Images/ Matt Cardy/Getty Images
It’s no secret that Joe Biden loves ice cream. He has been spotted in ice cream shops around the country, including grabbing a cone in Washington, DC, earlier this year.
“My name is Joe Biden, and I love ice cream,”said Biden at Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream in 2016 during his vice presidency.