President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump are hosting Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan, for a state dinner at the White House, with a menu designed to combine American ingredients with subtle Chinese influences.
The dinner, held in the East Room, will bring together members of the official delegations, government officials and prominent American business leaders. Melania Trump led preparations for the formal event, according to the Office of the First Lady.
The evening will begin with a toast featuring Schramsberg ‘Blanc De Noir’, which the White House says honours the historic ‘Toast to Peace’ shared by President Richard Nixon and Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai in Beijing in 1972.
However, Schramsberg’s own historical record states that the wine served at the 1972 dinner was its 1969 Blanc de Blancs, making the description in the White House menu release inconsistent with the winery’s account.
The first course will be yellow squash velouté served with wild mushroom fricassée, crispy pancetta and scallion oil.
The velouté highlights the sweetness of seasonal yellow squash, while the mushroom fricassée adds earthy flavours and fresh herbs. Crispy pancetta provides a smoky and savoury element, finished with scallion oil.
The second course will feature sesame-crusted sea bass with braised baby bok choy, roasted garden eggplant and sauce verte.
The sea bass will be coated with toasted sesame seeds to create a nutty crust while keeping the fish tender. Bok choy and sesame bring ingredients commonly associated with Chinese cuisine to the dish, while roasted eggplant and the herb-based sauce provide complementary flavours.
White House honey takes centre stage
Dessert will feature vanilla crémeux and White House honey ice cream, accompanied by walnut frangipane and sour cherry confit.
The dessert will include a smooth vanilla crémeux with a sour cherry centre, set on walnut frangipane. It will be presented in a fruit-shaped form and served with ice cream made with harvested White House honey.
The honey comes from the White House’s newest beehive, which was unveiled in April. The hive, handcrafted by a local artisan in the shape of the White House, added two colonies to the two already producing White House honey.
Red décor and presidential traditions
Chinese cultural influences will also feature prominently in the dinner’s décor, with red taking centre stage throughout the East Room.
The tables will be covered in rich red linens and decorated with dahlias and ranunculus, while urns will feature arrangements of red blossoms. Vermeil from the White House collection and the Reagan State Service will also be used, combining Chinese-inspired décor with American presidential tradition.
Guests will be entertained throughout the formal dinner, with Christopher Macchio, a classically trained tenor who performed at Trump’s 2025 presidential inauguration, headlining the performances.
Military musicians will also perform, including ‘The President’s Own’ United States Marine Band, ‘The Commandant’s Own’ United States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps, the United States Army Chorus and the United States Army Strings.
The White House did not initially release a complete guest list to the media, but prominent American business and technology leaders were expected to attend. They included Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Dell Technologies CEO Michael Dell, Apple executive chairman Tim Cook, Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla. Reuters also reported that several of these business leaders were expected to attend.
Advanced Micro Devices Chair and CEO Lisa Su also confirmed that she would attend the dinner, according to Fox Business.
The presence of major technology and business leaders comes as artificial intelligence, trade, technology and the broader US-China economic relationship are expected to feature prominently in Trump and Xi’s discussions.
It remains unclear who will attend from the Chinese business community, although reports had suggested that Chinese CEOs could accompany Xi.
