A beloved White House pastry chef who served five presidents over more than a quarter century has died.
Roland Mesnier died on Friday at an assisted living facility in Burke, Virginia. He was 78 years old.
His son, George Mesnier, told the Washington Post that his father succumbed to complications from cancer.
Mesnier began his pastry career at the age of 14 before landing a job in the Carter administration in 1979 after then-First Lady Rosalynn Carter was reportedly taken by his scrumptious low-calorie creations, frequently made with fruit.
Over the years, he helped satisfy chocolate mousse cravings for Ronald Reagan, and whipped up bizarre creations of coca-cola flavored jellies with black cherries for the Clinton White House.
He was the “king of sugar work — spun sugar, poured sugar, rock sugar, pulled sugar. Very few people know how to do this anymore. He makes roses that look real,” Francois Dionot, a culinary school founder once told the Los Angeles Daily News.
The Reagan Foundation and Institute offered condolences on Twitter. “His passion, commitment, and love for his work will always be remembered,” the official page for the former president said, sharing a photo of the chef with Nancy Reagan.
“I have such fond memories of Chef Mesnier,” Hillary Clinton tweeted with a photo of her standing with Mesnier while she was first lady. “He loved making people smile with his beautiful creations, including his famous gingerbread houses at Christmas. He will be missed!”
Mesnier left the White House in 2004 during the administration of George W. Bush and later wrote a memoir, “All the President’s Pastries.”