Donald Trump is currently making his way around Asia on a 12-day, five country trip throughout the continent. He started in Japan, and then made his way to China, where there was an official state dinner in his honor on Thursday night. Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted the event at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People and, besides Trump, many of the country’s business leaders were in attendance. The only thing that was unusual about the dinner, though, was the menu. The food was decidedly Americanized, no doubt to fit the palate of Trump.
Trump’s culinary tastes have not been celebrated as particularly diverse. He is known for enjoying well-done steaks, which practically anyone who enjoys a good steak will tell you is almost a cardinal sin, but he also likes to top it up with some ketchup. Although neither were present at Thursday night’s state dinner, the selection was still rather tame for Chinese standards.
Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun snapped a photo of the menu and posted it to Chinese social media website Weibo.
If you can’t read the photo, here’s what was on the menu:
Starter:
- Hors d’Oeuvres
Main:
- Coconut Flavored Chicken Soup
- Seafood Chowder
- Kung Pao Chicken
- Stewed Beef Steak in Tomato Sauce
- Braised Vegetables in Premium Broth
- Grouper Fillets in Hot Chili Oil
Dessert:
- Pastries
- Fruits & Ice Cream
- Coffee/Tea
Drink:
- Red Wine Great Wall 2009, Hebei China
- White Wine Great Wall 2011, Hebei China
As Mashable points out, Kung Pao Chicken is “technically” Chinese, but Trump is unlikely to have eaten it the traditional way, with spicy Sichuan peppers. Similarly, the stewed beef steak in tomato sauce is a strange addition to a Chinese menu. The South China Morning Post reported that the chefs responsible for this meal would have taken a guest’s “tastes, age and state of health” into consideration. It seems likely, then, that Trump’s notorious tastes made their way onto the menu.
In fact, Trump’s diet on this trip has been quite a source of fascination. In Japan, Trump shared a meal of well-done hamburger with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at a golf club, which is a very on-brand for the American president. But even back home, when he has gourmet chefs at his beck and call in the White House, Trump still asks his body guards to go get him McDonald’s when the kitchen just can’t suit his desires.
