Trump unveils new ‘Rose Garden Club’ at White House

WASHINGTON — Everything is coming up roses at this new club.

President Trump unveiled the newly-renovated Rose Garden Friday, and announced the new Rose Garden Club — billed as the “hottest” place to be in the nation’s capital.

“We have worked very hard to bring it to fruition and not an easy situation, but it’s something that I think we’re all going to enjoy for many, many years to come. It’s a tremendous place,” Trump told the dozens of lawmakers from the House and Senate invited to the affair.

And renovations were long overdue. “Every time we’d have a press conference, women in particular were sinking deep into the mud and at some point I said, you know, it’s time to make the change. We picked a great stone and we have a great speaker system.”

The White House had not officially announced the existence of the new “club” on any platform prior to Friday night’s dinner.

For a first course, guests feasted on the Rose Garden salad with baby iceberg lettuce, sunset tomatoes, brioche cracker, chives and thousand island dressing. For a second course they chose between a New York Strip steak with potato croquettes, grilled broccolini and spinach peppercorn sauce, or thyme roasted chicken with with mashed potatoes and young beans in dijon sauce. There was also a vegetarian option of summer pasta primavera. For dessert they indulged in a fudge-filled cake.

“The Rose Garden Club at the White House is the hottest place to be in Washington, or perhaps the world. The president looks forward to welcoming top business, political, and tech leaders for this dinner and the many dinners to come on the new, beautiful Rose Garden patio,” White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told The Hill in a statement.

The cost of the renovation, started in April, was not disclosed. The Rose Garden is only one of Trump’s recent renovation projects at the White House. He’s filled the Oval Office and the cabinet room with golden decor, erected two 100-ft flag poles on the North and South lawns and is also planning on building a self-funded $200 million ballroom by the East Wing.

The decor particularly the yellow umbrellas, recalled Trump’s private club at Mar-a-Lago, where he frequently has lunch and dinners with VIPs — and often controls the music. Songs such as “Whiter Shade of Pale” by Procol Harum and “Are You Lonesome Tonight?” by Elvis have been heard from the front of the White House in past weeks as Trump tested out the sound system.