4 Foods Barack Obama Simply Won't Eat

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Barack Obama's public persona has developed an interesting dynamic with food over the years. As just two examples, he was the first president to brew beer in the White House, and a book about junk food toppled his memoir from the Amazon charts. His willowy stature speaks as much to what POTUS number 44 eats as it does to what he refuses to eat. Many of Obama's culinary pet peeves include fried, fast, and fatty foods. However, the foods he absolutely won't eat form a more eclectic list that seems to supersede health considerations. For one, he doesn't like beets. There's also his staunch aversion to two ubiquitous condiments: ketchup and mayonnaise. He also dislikes M&M's, which he famously picks out of his trail mix.

While some of his culinary rejects may surprise you, the former president's dietary choices are mostly pretty relatable. Even the one food Obama just can't resist is the universally loved (if rather tame) nachos with guacamole. However, his notoriously persnickety food preferences have also led to funny moments, like when The New York Times misreported that Obama made a habit of snacking on exactly seven almonds. When NBC asked about the habit in a later interview, he clarified that his wife, Michelle Obama, said this jokingly to their chef, Sam Kass, while teasing the President for his disciplined dietary habits (via The Guardian).

Barack Obama's savage take on ketchup has gone viral in the past, making rounds on the news and even appearing on "Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown" in 2016. While talking about dolloping the condiment on a hot dog, Obama told Bourdain, "Well, let me put it this way, it's not acceptable past the age of 8." The late chef and travel show host seemed to agree with Obama's opinion. For anyone well-versed in the wonders of the Chicago-style hot dog, it should come as no surprise that the former Chicago resident and Illinois senator, like many Windy City locals, thinks using ketchup on this popular street food is a culinary crime.

About a decade after his sit-down with Bourdain, the former president spoke out about the condiment once again on an episode of his wife's podcast, "IMO with Michelle Obama & Craig Robinson." Barack prefaced his tirade by admitting that his stance was unpopular: "In my opinion, and this is controversial in my family, you should not eat ketchup after the age of 8." After his wife called him out for setting the ketchup cut-off age so low, he conceded his harshness, saying, "I might be a little too draconian." The episode went on to reveal how the Obama household very much has a bottle of ketchup, and the former president is the only one who doesn't use it. "No one's following his lead," Michelle noted with finality.

In his 2015 memoir "Power Forward: My Presidential Education," former aide to Barack Obama Reggie Love disclosed the foods that his high-profile boss actively shunned. Turns out ketchup isn't the only popular condiment Obama avoids — mayonnaise is right up there with it. While the specific reason for his dislike remains vague, this preference could explain why ranch salad dressing, which uses mayonnaise as a base, also appears on the no-go list. Mayo aversion is actually relatively common, with many pointing to its gloopy texture as the reason for their distaste.

Between ketchup and mayonnaise, the former president writes off two of the most popular burger condiments. Instead, he appears to enjoy mustard on his food, a detail that also got caught up in the news cycle back in 2009. Obama's detractors were quick to criticize his request for Dijon mustard on his hamburger as elitist during a presidential visit to a local burger outlet in Virginia.

Another anecdote from Reggie Love's book, "Power Forward: My Presidential Education," sheds light on Barack Obama's eating habits during the whirlwind schedule of his campaigning days. Love was tasked with maintaining and replenishing just about anything his boss would require while on the go, from snacks and water to Nicorette gum. Once, the wrong trail mix elicited a swift reaction from Obama, making his strong feelings toward certain foods abundantly clear. "The senator opened the bag of trail mix I'd bought and proceeded to pick out every M&M, holding them all in his palm like pieces of candy-coated toxic waste," Love wrote. "'I'm not going to eat these,'" Obama reportedly told his aide (via Business Insider).

Ironically, toxic candy has a whole new meaning under President Donald Trump, who refers to his candy bowl as "poison." And while the current president may be partial to sugary treats, it's pretty clear that Obama rarely, if ever, snacked on this specific sugar-coated candy — perhaps not even the coveted Air Force One-branded M&M's gifted to guests on the presidential aircraft.

Barack Obama's dislike of beets became news even before he officially took up residence in the White House. The Associated Press revealed in 2008 that his response when asked about the red root was a definitive "I always avoid eating them" (via The New York Times). Possibly because of Obama's well-known healthy eating habits, the internet provided a flurry of delicious beet recipes following news of his disdain for the nutritious and versatile veggie.

The former president, however, remained a staunch detractor. In a 2025 episode of "IMO with Michelle Obama & Craig Robinson," the former first lady confirmed this when discussing her own dislike of beets. She jokingly mentioned a "beet gene," indicating how divisive the root vegetable is. "Barack, thankfully, one of the reasons I married him, he is not a beet gene person," she said. The Obamas' preferences were also apparent in the White House kitchen garden installed in the South Lawn under Michelle's supervision. Amongst over 50 varieties of vegetables, herbs, and berries, beets were conspicuously absent.