Presidential Foodie Favorites
Comfort food is defined as food that provides consolation or a feeling of well-being, often associated with childhood. These presidential favorites are well-documented, and although ice cream seems to be a favorite with most of them, squirrel stew is one of the more unusual dishes to feature. Squirrel meat is described as tasting like a cross between duck and lamb—we’ll take their word for it.
George Washington: Fish and ice cream
John Adams: Indian pudding
Thomas Jefferson: French food, ice cream
James Madison: Ice cream
James Monroe: Fried chicken
John Quincy Adams: Fresh fruit
Andrew Jackson: French food
Martin Van Buren: Oysters, donuts
William Henry Harrison: Squirrel stew
John Tyler: Pudding
James K. Polk: Cornpone
Zachary Taylor: Creole food, spicy food
Millard Fillmore: Soup (Fillmore was the first to install a cast-iron stove in the White House.)
Franklin Pierce: Fried clams
James Buchanan: Fresh butter
Abraham Lincoln: Chicken fricassee, herbed biscuits
Alexander Hamilton: Beef, anything with apples
Source: Blankenship, Sara, “The Favorite Foods of All 44 Presidents,” Dallas Observer, Feb 20, 2012.