Most people assume the President of the United States eats fancy desserts made by world-class chefs. Multi-layered French pastries, hand-crafted truffles, maybe gold-leaf chocolates? Nope. Donald Trump’s sweet tooth runs on the same stuff found at any gas station checkout line. We’re talking about penny candy, fast food shakes, and cookies that come in a blue package. His dessert choices are so ordinary that they actually become surprising.
Pink Starbursts are his top candy pick
Everyone has that one candy they always grab first from a bag. Maybe it’s the red Skittles or the orange gummy bears. For Donald Trump, it’s Pink Starbursts — the strawberry ones. During a White House event for Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told a group of kids that Pink Starbursts are one of the president’s favorite candies. That’s a pretty specific preference, and honestly, a lot of people agree with him. Pink Starbursts have such a big fan base that companies now sell bags of just the pink ones.
When Leavitt was asked how much candy Trump actually eats, she said a “good amount.” That’s vague enough to mean just about anything. But the fact that he has a go-to color in a pack of fruit chews makes him sound like every kid at a sleepover sorting through candy wrappers. It’s one of those small details that makes a powerful person seem pretty normal. Whether someone is in the Oval Office or sitting on the couch, everyone plays favorites with candy.
Tootsie Rolls stay in regular rotation
Tootsie Rolls have been around since 1907. They show up in Halloween bags, movie theater concession stands, and your grandmother’s candy dish. They’re not exactly the trendiest candy on the market. Nobody is posting Tootsie Rolls on Instagram next to a latte. But Trump reportedly keeps them in regular rotation alongside those Pink Starbursts. These chocolate-flavored chews are straightforward and never try to be anything they’re not. They taste the same every single time.
What’s worth noticing is that both of Trump’s top candy choices are individually wrapped. Each piece comes sealed in its own little wrapper, untouched until the moment someone opens it. This connects to his well-known concern about germs and contamination. He has spoken publicly about preferring food that is sealed and prepared in a predictable way. So his candy preferences aren’t just about taste — they also fit neatly into his habits around cleanliness. A Tootsie Roll in its wrapper is about as safe as candy gets.
Oreos were stocked on Air Force One
Here’s something fun to think about: Air Force One, the presidential plane, was regularly loaded with multiple packages of Oreos. Not one pack tucked in a cabinet — multiple packages, enough so Trump would never run out during a flight. Again, the germ concern played a role. Having several sealed packages meant he could crack open a fresh one each time without worrying about contamination. Oreos are one of America’s most popular cookies, and apparently they’re popular at 30,000 feet too.
Trump’s relationship with Oreos has had its ups and downs, though. Back in 2015, he publicly threatened to boycott the brand. He claimed the parent company was moving operations to Mexico. The controversy made headlines for a little while, but it clearly didn’t stick. The cookies found their way back into his snack lineup without much drama. Oreos are available at every grocery store, gas station, and vending machine in the country. They cross every age group and background. And clearly, they cross political drama too.
He got two scoops while guests got one
At a White House dinner, Trump was served two scoops of vanilla ice cream for dessert. Everyone else at the table received one. This wasn’t some mistake by the kitchen staff — it was reportedly standard protocol. The story got a lot of attention because it’s such a small, funny detail. Who wouldn’t want an extra scoop? Vanilla might seem like a plain choice, but it’s actually the most popular ice cream pick in America. Trump’s preference lines up with millions of other people in the country.
Beyond plain vanilla, Trump also enjoys ice cream sundaes with chocolate sauce and various toppings. So while the base is simple, he doesn’t mind dressing it up a bit. The two-scoop moment became one of those little stories that people couldn’t stop talking about. Getting more ice cream than everyone else at the table is the kind of perk that sounds genuinely appealing. Forget fancy privileges — just give most people an extra scoop of ice cream and they’d be pretty happy about it.
McDonald’s shakes are a go-to order
Trump’s love for McDonald’s goes well beyond Big Macs and fries. His favorite shakes come from the golden arches, and he orders them in chocolate and vanilla. These aren’t artisan milkshakes from some trendy spot with a 45-minute wait. They’re the same shakes that millions of people grab through drive-thru windows every day. Made with soft serve and shake syrup, they taste exactly the same no matter which location pours them. That consistency is a big part of the appeal.
Trump has mentioned that he likes fast food partly because of how predictable it is. Everything is made the same way, every time. A McDonald’s shake in New York tastes the same as one in a small town in Kansas. For someone who worries about food preparation, that kind of uniformity is comforting. It also means satisfying a craving doesn’t require planning ahead or calling a personal chef. Just pull up to the drive-thru, order a shake, and it’s done. Simple, reliable, no surprises.
Nacho cheese Doritos fill the savory gap
When the sweet tooth takes a break, Trump reaches for something salty. His go-to savory snack is nacho cheese-flavored Doritos. Bags of them are reportedly kept stocked in the White House kitchen at all times. During busy campaign seasons, snacking becomes even more frequent. In a 2015 interview with People, Trump said his campaign diet was “only snacks” because things moved so fast that full meals weren’t always possible. Doritos and other chip brands like Lay’s filled that gap.
He’s not the only high-profile fan of nacho cheese Doritos, either. Kamala Harris has also been linked to the same snack. Even Chrissy Teigen has talked about loving the cheesy seasoning on the chips — though she reportedly licks it off and skips the actual chip part. Trump keeps pretzels in the mix too, and just like with his candy, he prefers to open a fresh bag every time he snacks. No communal bowls of chips for this president. Everything has to be sealed and untouched.
See’s Candies also made the list
Along with the budget-friendly candy picks, Trump also enjoys treats from See’s Candies. See’s has been around since 1921 and is known for boxed chocolates and seasonal specialties. It’s the kind of brand people often receive as a gift during the holidays. Adding See’s to the mix shows that while Trump leans toward simple snacks most of the time, he doesn’t completely ignore the slightly fancier side of sweets. It’s a nice middle ground between Tootsie Rolls and high-end European chocolate.
See’s is an American brand with a loyal following, especially on the West Coast. Their chocolates come in sealed boxes, which once again fits the pattern of Trump preferring packaged treats. It’s interesting that even when he steps up from everyday candy, the choice is still something familiar and widely available. No one needs a reservation or a special order to grab a box of See’s. It’s sold in malls, airports, and online. Even this “upgrade” pick stays well within the range of what most people can easily buy.
Steak dinners always end with sundaes
When asked about Trump’s overall eating habits, Press Secretary Leavitt described a pretty classic American dinner. He enjoys a “big, beautiful steak” as his main course, and when dessert time comes around, ice cream sundaes loaded with chocolate sauce are often the choice. It’s the kind of meal that could come from any steakhouse in any town across the country. A heavy main course followed by something cold and sweet — nothing complicated, nothing that needs a long explanation on the menu.
This steak-and-sundae combo is about as traditional as American dining gets. There’s no foam, no reduction, and no ingredients that need a pronunciation guide. It’s meat followed by ice cream, the same progression people have enjoyed for decades. For someone who could have personal chefs building elaborate multi-course meals every night, this straightforward approach to dinner is almost refreshing. It proves that having access to everything doesn’t always mean wanting everything. Sometimes the classics stick around because they work perfectly fine as they are.
Diet Coke washes it all down
No conversation about Trump’s snack habits is complete without mentioning Diet Coke. Reports claim he drinks up to 12 cans a day. That’s a lot of soda by anyone’s standard. He reportedly even installed a button in the Oval Office that alerted staff when he needed a fresh can. That’s commitment. He almost never drinks coffee, choosing Diet Coke instead as his go-to drink throughout the day. Cans of it are stocked on Air Force One right alongside the Oreos and Doritos.
Diet Coke pairs with pretty much everything in Trump’s snack lineup — Tootsie Rolls, Pink Starbursts, Doritos, cookies, and sundaes. It acts as the constant running through all his meals and snacks, whether he’s at the White House, on his plane, or at a rally. The drink is sweetened with aspartame rather than sugar, which technically makes it the least sugary item in his rotation. But 12 cans a day is still a staggering number. It shows just how deeply ingrained his snack and drink habits really are.
What stands out most about Trump’s sweet treats and snacks is how ordinary they are. Pink Starbursts, Tootsie Rolls, Oreos, vanilla ice cream, and McDonald’s shakes — these are things found in every grocery store and drive-thru in the country. There’s no pretending to enjoy something fancy for the cameras. His preferences are built on familiarity, consistency, and sealed packaging. It turns out that being president doesn’t change what someone reaches for when a sugar craving hits late in the afternoon.
