President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump hosted King Charles and Queen Camilla at the White House on Tuesday, April 28, for a formal state dinner shaped around spring ingredients and garden imagery. According to People Magazine, Melania Trump led the planning for the meal, which moved course by course through light seasonal dishes rather than the president’s more casual food preferences. The occasion also featured military music, floral tablescapes and a room design tied to the guests’ shared interest in gardens, giving the evening a cohesive royal tone.
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Melania Trump Builds a Spring-Driven Menu
The first course paired a garden herb velouté with a hearts of palm salad finished with crispy shallots and micro mint. That was followed by spring herb ravioli filled with ricotta, morel mushrooms and herbs from the White House Kitchen Garden, served with a parmesan emulsion. The fish course kept the same direction: Dover sole meunière with brown butter, spring ramps, snow peas, pavé potatoes and parsley oil. Dessert returned to the garden theme with a beehive-shaped chocolate gâteau, vanilla bean crémeux, almond joconde, brown butter crumble, crème fraîche ice cream and White House honey.
King Charles and Queen Camilla Sample White House Honey
The dessert had an added connection to the royal visit. King Charles, 77, and Queen Camilla, 78, had already tasted the presidential honey a day earlier when the Trumps showed them Melania Trump’s new White House-shaped beehive. The installation expands a beekeeping program first launched during Michelle Obama’s time at the White House. That detail linked the meal to a broader presentation of the grounds, with food drawn not only from the kitchen staff’s planning but also from ingredients and symbols tied directly to the residence’s gardens and outdoor spaces.
East Room Decor Echoes English Garden Themes
The setting matched the menu closely. Instead of the traditional State Dining Room, dinner was held in the East Room, where trees and greenery were used to evoke English gardens. Guests entered through a Grand Foyer decorated with cherry blossoms, while tables were arranged with lilac, butterfly ranunculus, phlox and lily of the valley. China from the Clinton and Bush administrations was selected for the meal. Wines were also chosen with symbolism in mind, including bottles meant to honor the shared heritage and enduring friendship between the United States and the United Kingdom.
British Embassy Garden Party Adds a Second Food Focus
The day before the dinner, the Trumps hosted the monarchs for private afternoon tea before they headed to a large garden party at the British Embassy. There, embassy head chef Craig Harnden prepared British-inspired snacks for more than 600 guests. "The calculation is based on experience and a little bit of luck," the chef said according to People Magazine. Harnden and his team planned 2,500 to 3,000 sandwiches, including Scottish salmon, roast beef and horseradish, egg mayonnaise and cucumber, along with fresh scones served warm with clotted cream and strawberry jam.
