President Ulysses S. Grant's Favorite Breakfast Food Was A Bit Unconventional

Who's buried in Grant's Tomb? Technically speaking, no one — the tomb is above ground, so the proper question would be "who's interred in Grant's Tomb?" That answer is a little more straightforward: 18th president Ulysses S. Grant and his wife, Julia. Although his face graces the $50 bill, Grant is seen as something of a mid-tier president, praised for his stance on African-American civil rights while criticized for allowing rampant corruption in his administration. Even his defenders allow that he was a better general than a president, although seeing as he helped the Union win the Civil War, that's not really an insult. Grant's time in the army shaped him as a person, up to and including his diet. In fact, his favorite breakfast food was little more than cucumber.

Grant was a man of simple tastes. He had little patience for anything too fancy. If he had his way, he would have served turkey for every single White House dinner prepared by an army cook. Accordingly, his breakfast of choice was no-frills. He ate cucumber that had been soaked in a concoction of vinegar, milk, and sugar plus salt and pepper for seasoning. It was somewhere between a pickle and a salad and would probably hit the spot as a light lunch. But for breakfast? Far be it from us to question Grant's judgment — we didn't lead the Union to victory at Vicksburg — but it's an odd choice.

Ulysses S. Grant was more than happy to let his wife, Julia, deal with the ins and outs of entertaining guests. She replaced Grant's army cook with a proper White House chef who developed a proper, extensive menu with dinners than ran up to 29 courses. In the meantime, he would eat his simple fare whenever he could. He liked apples, and would often eat them over pancakes; he ate mackerel, bacon, and steak, too. But his one true love was, believe it or not, rice pudding.

In fact, he was absolutely crazy for the stuff. His chef described his taste for the dessert as "almost a mania," so he would eat it for dessert any chance he got. It's a little odd imagining ol' Unconditional Surrender Grant going ham on a bowl of sweet, grainy mush, but presidents have often had a taste for sweets. George Washington would partake in "Great Cake" served by his wife, Gerald Ford would demolish pints of butter pecan ice cream, and Ronald Reagan famously loved jellybeans. That said, we're willing to bet none of them ate cucumber salad for breakfast.