The Worst Food in White House History

May 4, 2023·20 min

Eleanor Roosevelt's White House was notorious for serving the worst food in presidential history, with guests like Ernest Hemingway learning to eat before attending dinner there. Culinary historian Laura Shapiro's research reveals that while Eleanor was blamed for the terrible meals, she wasn't actually cooking—that responsibility fell to Henrietta Nesbitt, an amateur cook from Hyde Park whom Eleanor specifically chose over professionals. The food was consistently described as gray, overcooked, and lifeless, featuring dishes like 'eggs Mexican' made with rice, eggs, and bananas, and lamb so overcooked guests thought it was mutton. FDR, who had been raised with excellent food and had refined tastes, suffered through these meals but never directly fired Nesbitt, leaving domestic matters to Eleanor's control. One theory suggests Eleanor used bad food as subtle revenge against FDR's wandering eye and his close relationship with assistant Missy LeHand, particularly after discovering his affair with Lucy Mercer. Another explanation lies in Eleanor's embrace of the home economics movement of the 1920s, which promoted scientific nutrition over flavor and pleasure. This movement allowed women to enter scientific careers through domestic channels, and Eleanor saw the White House as a demonstration kitchen for Depression-era families, showing nutritionally balanced but flavorless meals. Eleanor's relationship with her domineering mother-in-law Sarah also influenced her rejection of luxurious, pleasure-focused dining. However, Eleanor's personal writings reveal a different story when she traveled outside the White House—she would describe delicious meals with enthusiasm and even admit to overeating at Chinese restaurants. At her private cottage in Hyde Park, surrounded by friends she loved, Eleanor clearly enjoyed good food and showed genuine appetites. This split between her public puritanical food image and private enjoyment suggests her White House food choices were more complex than simple indifference to pleasure. The episode argues that examining women's relationships with food reveals essential truths about their lives, emotions, politics, and personal struggles that traditional biographies often overlook.

As heard by us

A sharp food-history story where terrible White House dinners reveal Eleanor Roosevelt's power, politics, and possible private payback.

Burnt Toast treats the Roosevelt White House dinner table as a deliciously miserable little scandal. Guests arrived thrilled to meet FDR and Eleanor Roosevelt, then wrote home about gray meat, limp salads, and the Washington rule that you ate before a White House invitation.

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Why you'd press play

If you want White House dinner gossip with overcooked lamb and a real historical edge, press play.

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