Donald Trump's surprisingly simple China state visit menu revealed
Ella Scott
Featured Image Credit: Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP via Getty Images
The extravagant state dinner menu served to President Donald Trump during his diplomatic ‘historic’ visit to China has been revealed, featuring fusion favourites like ribs, pork buns, and two Italian-style puddings.
On Thursday (14 May), Trump, 79, and various famous faces piled into Beijing’s Hall of the People, where the Republican claimed he and China’s President Xi Jinping had already held ‘extremely positive and productive conversations’
Xi, who claimed he wanted the United States and China to be ‘partners rather than rivals’, used the dinner to claim that rejuvenating the Chinese nation and making America great again could go ‘hand in hand’.
The rousing speeches were made as part of Trump’s three-day state visit to discuss trade, technology, and regional security involving Iran and Taiwan, as per the Independent.
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Huaiyang cuisine, one of China’s four great culinary traditions, took centre stage at the banquet, which was soundtracked by the military band of the People’s Liberation Army.
Google Arts & Culture stated that the cuisine is revered for its delicate balance of fresh ingredients, mild flavour and flawless knife work, while Shi Qiang, executive chef at Shanghai’s upscale Gui Hua Lou restaurant, told Reuters that its flavours are favoured as they are ‘widely acceptable and accessible to most people ... including international guests’.
“From the overall philosophy of Huaiyang cuisine, state banquets are not centred on luxury ingredients. They don’t rely on expensive items; extravagance is simply not the focus.”
Prior to being served at the Trump-Xi banquet, Huaiyang cuisine featured at the 1949 ‘founding banquet’, marking the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, and at the country’s 50th anniversary state banquet in 1999.
In 2002, a banquet hosted by former Chinese President Jiang Zemin for then-US President George W. Bush, also featured classic Huaiyang dishes.
According to Shanghai-based food writer Christopher St. Cavish, the style is ideal for diplomatic settings because it is ‘light’ and does not rely on ‘exotic ingredients’ like Cantonese cuisine does and usually isn’t spicy like Sichuanese.
Before tucking into the six-dish main event, guests - including Elon Musk, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Apple’s Tim Cook - were seated in front of a special place setting.
It featured their name, multiple sets of golden cutlery, chopsticks, wine and drinking glasses, hors d'oeuvres, and a traditional Chinese cloche used to cover the food.
Entrées included: crispy beef ribs; roast duck, a Beijing speciality; slow-cooked salmon served in a mustard sauce; pan-fried pork buns; and a slew of stewed seasonal vegetables.
Another dish that was included on the main course menu was lobster in a rich tomato soup.
While Trump prefers a well-done steak and a Filet-O-Fish from McDonald's, he has been known to indulge in fish dishes like a Dover sole meunière bathed in a nutty brown butter.
The latter was served up to King Charles III and Queen Camilla during their recent state visit to the US.
However, one thing Trump does not enjoy is raw fish, having previously shunned the delicacy on trips to Japan.
His wife, Melania Trump, First Lady of the United States, also isn’t a fan, writing in her titular 2024 memoir that she ‘made it known’ during a Japanese state visit in 2019 that she wouldn’t be eating it.
The state banquet was finished with three desserts: fruits and ice cream, tiramisu, and something described as ‘trumpet shell-shaped pastry’.
The latter is presumably sfogliatella, a rich dessert with a crunchy exterior that hails from the Campania region of Italy.
The item, sometimes called ‘lobster tail pastry’, was allegedly prepared only for the Italian aristocracy during the Renaissance, as per Allrecipes.
Interestingly, the New York Times reported that zha jiang main, a timeless Chinese noodle dish favoured by the likes of Australian chef Dan Hong, was left off the menu.
The Beijing speciality, which translates as ‘fried sauce noodles’, is composed of wheat noodles topped with soybean paste and caramelised brown sauce made of ground beef or pork.
“I love the slippery noodles combined with that sweet mince sauce. The most important thing is your pork mince – it’s got to be nice and fatty,” Hong said, as per Broadsheet.