REUTERS/Larry Downing
Some previous presidents have preferred to spend the holiday at Camp David, the secluded Maryland mountaintop retreat, but the Obamas have more chosen to have dinner at the Executive Mansion on this occasion.
The guest list for the private affair wasn't made public, so it wasn't clear who would be joining the president, first lady Michelle and daughters Sasha and Malia.
The menu was quintessential Thanksgiving, with turkey, honey-baked ham, cornbread stuffing, oyster stuffing, greens, macaroni and cheese, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole and dinner rolls. For dessert, the family had a choice of huckleberry pie, pecan pie, chocolate cream pie, sweet potato pie, banana cream pie or coconut cream pie.