Homebody president avoids D.C. amenities
WASHINGTON — After living in Washington for nearly a year, President Donald Trump has yet to enjoy a single nonworking meal at a restaurant that doesn’t pay him rent. He hasn’t taken in a performance at the Kennedy Center, hasn’t been to a sporting event and hasn’t toured most of the sights.
It’s one of the peculiarities of the Trump presidency and one of a long list of ways in which he’s changing the office, as well as its relationship with Washington.
“I would say that Trump has been the least present of any of the most recent presidents,” said Phil Mendelson, chairman of the Washington, D.C., City Council and a Democratic member of the council since 1999.
It’s not just restaurants, Mendelson said. Trump has been less engaged on the local charity circuit than other recent presidents, with no stops at local food banks or to help elementary school reading drives. First lady Melania Trump has been venturing out more often, appearing with Jordan’s Queen Rania at a girls’ charter school, attending a holiday toy drive sponsored by the military and visiting with patients and staff at Children’s National Medical Center.
But the homebody president rarely goes out — and when he does, it’s almost always to properties that bear his name.
Trump has dined at just one restaurant in Washington: BLT Prime in the Trump International Hotel, which opened last year just a few blocks from the White House. Most often, Trump, who is known to prefer well-done steaks with ketchup to snootier fare, chooses to eat in.
“I love the food in the White House. The White House is the greatest restaurant, it’s the most beautiful,” he told the Larry O’Connor radio show last month. “They do such a beautiful job.”
Trump took office as arguably the most prepared of recent presidents for the constraints of living and working in the White House and its Secret Serviceenforced security bubble, having spent decades ensconced at Trump Tower in New York.
“The reason my hair looks so neat all the time is because I don’t have to deal with the elements. I live in the building where I work. I take an elevator from my bedroom to my office. The rest of the time, I’m either in my stretch limousine, my private jet, my helicopter, or my private club in Palm Beach, Fla.,” he once wrote.
Not much has changed — though the house, plane and helicopter are now taxpayer-paid.
Trump’s homebody ways mark a dramatic shift from his predecessor, who relished the D.C. dining scene. The Obamas embraced Washington, sampling its hottest restaurants, from high-end to low brow.
Obama also embraced the city in other ways, celebrating Small Business Saturday, for instance, with a trip to the Kramerbooks cafe with his daughters. Michelle Obama was often spotted at the SoulCycle fitness center.
The Trumps have kept a much lower profile, with no known first lady shopping trips or presidential visits to son Barron’s soccer games. Trump did visit the Smithsonian’s new National Museum of African American History and Culture in February, designated Black History Month.
Jessica Sidman, the food editor at Washingtonian magazine, said Trump may face resistance in the Democratic city, where he won just 4 percent of the vote.
“It’s good to show respect to your community” by giving them business, she said, “but I’m just not sure to what extent he’s welcome in the community.”