The Popular Condiment President Obama Dislikes

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The American public often seems to have just as much fascination — if not more — with the favorite foods and drinks of U.S. presidents as it does with their policies. This was definitely true while former President Barack Obama was in office. The internet is full of articles and posts about what the former POTUS does and doesn't like in terms of foodstuffs. While he has his preferred dishes — such as his favorite food, the classic cheeseburger — Obama is, interestingly, a bit hard on condiments. The former commander in chief believes ketchup doesn't belong on hot dogs, for instance — or basically anywhere else if one is over the age of 8 — and he also has a distaste for another popular sauce: mayonnaise.

And Obama doesn't just mildly dislike mayonnaise — he hates it, according to his former assistant Reggie Love, per Business Insider. Love's book, "Power Forward: My Presidential Education," is full of factoids about Obama's culinary proclivities, including his detestation of mayonnaise. If a food item was mistakenly delivered to him that had mayonnaise on it, Obama would literally scrape the mayo off with disgust before proceeding to eat it.

Exactly why this previous POTUS loathes the condiment doesn't seem to be publicly known. He's certainly not alone in the opinion, though. Other public figures who can't stand the stuff include "The Tonight Show" host Jimmy Fallon, who had a traumatic childhood experience wherein his grandma greased down his head with mayo to free it from between the bars of a railing. Singing star Dionne Warwick also detests the substance, as does culinary celeb Rachael Ray (though it's only the store-bought stuff she doesn't like — she'll eat homemade mayo).

Mayonnaise and ketchup aren't the only comestibles Barack Obama has a beef with. The former prez also takes issue with fast food in general and doesn't like anything fried, according to Reggie Love. It's well documented that Obama likes cheeseburgers and french fries, though, and would regularly hit up places like Five Guys and Shake Shack during his time in office ... so, we're not sure where the discrepancy comes into play there (although it wouldn't be the first time a politician said one thing while practicing another). When he indulges in a cheeseburger, mayo is conspicuously absent — that much we know. During Obama's first flight on Air Force One, the in-flight meal he ordered was a burger topped with cheddar, tomato, and lettuce, and the only saucy condiment in sight was Dijon mustard — definitely no mayonnaise.

Soda and coffee also made the naughty list — Obama favors juice and green tea. Fried walleye is something else he won't touch with a 10-foot fork, along with M&Ms — at least, when they're part of a trail mix. Some reports say he likes the candies on their own. However, this could stem from the fact that Obama gave out special presidential M&Ms during his time in office. This was nothing singular, though, as M&Ms are the official candy of the White House, and custom boxes have been traditionally handed out by the sitting president since Ronald Reagan's time in office. Love reported that Obama wrinkled his nose at the presence of M&Ms in his trail mix once and unceremoniously removed each and every candy from the package. So, we're guessing the sweets aren't something the former president keeps stocked in his pantry.