Image: keystone
April 29, 2026, 3:01 p.mApril 29, 2026, 3:01 p.m
The king is 77, the queen is 78, the president is 79, so you have to serve something lighter, thought Melania Trump, 56, who was responsible for putting together the state banquet on Tuesday evening in the White House.
The decoration was intended to celebrate the beauty of English gardens, cherry blossoms, lilacs, lily of the valley, ranunculus and flox were brought in. The color of the evening was also cherry blossom, Melania strictly adhered to it in her choice of clothing, Queen Camilla translated it into a strong fuchsia red and wore a solid amethist and Diamond necklacewhich had once belonged to Queen Victoria’s mother.
Fuchsia vs. cherry blossom: Camilla clearly outshines Melania here.Image: keystone
King Charles told humorous anecdotes about Churchill and Eisenhower and, to everyone’s amusement, presented Trump with a large gold bell with the inscription “Trump 1944” that had belonged to a British submarine, the HMS Trump, during World War II. “If you ever need us, just ring the bell,” said Charles. Trump was infatuated.
Charles has just unveiled the Trump Bell (far left).Image: www.imago-images.de
But back to the food. Thanks to the flowery descriptions of the New York Times we know exactly what the kings were able to enjoy. Namely a light, largely vegetarian spring meal except for the dessert.
«As a starter there is a delicate velouté made from garden herbs, creamy and aromatic, complemented by a refreshing palm heart salad. The dish is rounded off with crispy roasted shallots and a hint of mint sprouts, which provide freshness and contrast.”
It must be noted that lily of the valley and lilac are really too intrusive olfactorily for table decoration.Image: keystone
“The second course consists of handmade ravioli with spring herbs from the White House kitchen garden, generously filled with creamy ricotta and earthy morels and refined with a light Parmesan emulsion that perfectly brings out the flavor of the dish.”
«The third course consists of a classic sole meunière, expertly prepared and served in nutty brown butter. The fish is accompanied by tender spring onions, sweet mangetout, potato pavé and fresh parsley oil, giving the dish a sophisticated, seasonal touch.»
View of the table company.Image: keystone
And for dessert? There was a beehive-shaped chocolate cake, almond sponge cake with vanilla crémeux (don’t tell me you don’t know what crémeux is!) brown butter sprinkles, crème fraîche ice cream and honey from the White House garden.
The table linen was soft green, porcelain from the Clinton and Bush eras was used, the main thing was that it had gold rims as wide as possible. Trump is said to have behaved well throughout most of the evening and was like putty in the king’s hands. Everyone agrees that they were peaceful, peaceful and amicable hours away from war. May the reflection of this last a while longer.
P.S Our editorial onion hater Daniel Huber (see below) thinks that far too much onion was used in the dish with the shallots and spring onions.
«Wake up! Onions are the worst thing there is!”
Video: watson/Daniel Huber, Emily Engkent
(sme)