The Potus Diet: 17 U.S. Presidents and Their All-Time Favorite Foods

Thomas Jefferson – French fries

Jefferson was, what we now call, a foodie person. Similar to Adams, he had traveled to Europe and got a taste of the European dishes during his time as a French minister and visits to Italy and Holland. He became a food connoisseur and also introduced some dishes to the American public. For instance, it is said that Jefferson is the one who brought the French fries from France, after discovering them on the streets of Paris, and macaroni from Italy.

He admitted to having a thing for French cuisine, but he was also very interested in locally sourced and organic food, calling his kitchen “half French, half Virginian.” Among the foods Jefferson seemed to prefer, historians listed white soup, cabbage pudding, mac and cheese and ice cream.

Abraham Lincoln – Chicken fricasse

According to history buffs, Abraham Lincoln was not a gourmand, thinking of food as a source of energy rather than a source of pleasure. Some say the foods he liked reflected his humble roots.

In his book “A Treasury of White House Cooking”, Francois Rysavy claims that Lincoln enjoyed simple foods such as corned beef and cabbage and cornpone. One of his favorite dishes was chicken fricassee, served with nutmeg, mace, and gravy with chicken drippings. According to his own stories, Lincoln also liked to eat gingerbread when he was a child.