October 13, 2011
White House state dinners tend to feature a mouthwatering menu, an exclusive guest list, musicians who are used to headlining at the Kennedy Center and formal toasts by world leaders. Thursday night’s dinner honoring South Korea President Lee Myung-bak, the fifth state dinner for the Obama administration, is destined to have all of the above. yet with all the similarities, no two dinners are alike — especially in this administration. The state dinner honoring India Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was heavy on both Hollywood and uninvited guests; the evening honoring China President Hu Jintao sparked a clothing controversy; and, at the most recent dinner, Sweet Baby James Taylor was the only A-lister. In anticipation of Thursday’s state dinner, POLITICO looks back at the Obama administration’s four previous dinners. INDIA Honoree: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Social secretary: Desiree Rogers FLOTUS wore: A gold custom-made, embroidered strapless evening gown by new York-based, Indian-born designer Naeem Khan. Celebrity guests: Steven Spielberg, Alfre Woodard, Blair Underwood, Jennifer Hudson, A.R. Rahman, David Geffen, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Deepak Chopra, M. Night Shyamalan, Indra Nooyi, Katie Couric, Brian Williams, Robin Roberts, Sanjay Gupta and Gayle King. Best dressed: M. Night Shyamalan and his wife, Bhavna Shyamalan. Biggest headline: Reality-TV Wannabes Crash White House State Dinner Guest chef: Marcus Samuelsson Menu highlights: Potato and eggplant salad with arugula from the White House garden, red lentil soup and roasted potato dumplings, green curry prawns, pumpkin pie tart, pear tatin and American wines. Dazzling décor: Dinner was held in a white tent on the South Lawn with views of the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. round tables were covered with green tablecloths and napkins, as well as gold china. The flowers were purple and magenta arrangements of roses, sweet peas and hydrangeas. The whoops factor: that uninvited blonde in a sari, her hubby, the third less-famous crasher and the fingers pointed at Desiree Rogers. MEXICO Honoree: President Felipe Calderon Social secretary: Julianna Smoot FLOTUS wore: A bright blue, one-shoulder Peter Soronen-designed gown with a bright silver belt and her hair in large, loose curls. Celebrity guests: Whoopi Goldberg, Eva Longoria-Parker, Gayle King, Shani Davis, new York Jets’s Mark Sanchez and D’Brickashaw Ferguson and George Lopez. Best dressed: Eva Longoria-Parker in Reem Acra. Biggest headline: Obama’s Second State Dinner Attracts no Gate Crashers Guest chef: Rick Bayless Menu highlights: Herb-green ceviche of Hawaiian opah, sesame-cilantro cracker, Oregon wagyu beef in Oaxacan black mole, chocolate-cajeta tart, toasted homemade marshmallows, graham cracker crumble and goat cheese ice cream. Dazzling décor: A blue rippling water theme was created in the East Room. round and rectangular tables were covered with Mayan blues and set off by roses, cattleya orchids, geranium foliage and prickly pear cactus. The South Lawn reception had tables covered in oranges and greens and bouquets of marzipan and chocolate flowers. The whoops factor: Chef Rick Bayless was accused of breaching White House protocol after his avalanche of tweets. also, Chief of Protocol Capricia Marshall fell on the White House North Portico steps.
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