In the late 19th century, the term state dinner became synonymous with a dinner hosted by the president honoring a foreign head of state. The first visiting head of state to attend a state dinner at the White House was King David Kalakaua of the Kingdom of Hawaii, who was on a state visit of the United States, hosted by Ulysses S. Grant on 12 December 1874. The restoration of the White House by the architectural firm McKim, Mead, and White in 1902 created a more proper setting for official entertainment to occur. When the president's office moved to the newly constructed West Wing, the Neoclassical remodeling of the Executive Residence's state rooms gave Theodore Roosevelt a perfect venue reflecting the United States' growing power and influence around the world. While the White House underwent a complete interior reconstruction from 1948 to 1952, Harry S. Truman and Bess Truman lived at Blair House and state dinners were held in local hotels in the nation's capital. Long banquet tables were always used in the State Dining Room prior to the administration of John F. Kennedy. However, these were permanently discarded by Jacqueline Kennedy and replaced with round tables which could seat a far greater number of guests, approximately 120 to 140, in such a tight and confined space. To this day, presidents and first ladies continue to add their own personal touches and flair in entertaining foreign guests of state at the White House, having full access to the vermeil collection of gilded candelabras and flatware, the President's House crystal pattern, as well as the priceless collection of White House china which dates from the James Monroe administration to the George W. Bush administration, for use at a state dinner. Sequence of events

During a state dinner, honor guards and color guards in full dress uniform from all branches of the United States Armed Forces are dispatched for ceremonial duty at the White House. At the North Portico entrance of the White House, the President of the United States and the First Lady of the United States formally greet the visiting head of state and his or her spouse, who have arrived in a motorcade from Blair House, the traditional guest quarters of foreign heads of state and dignitaries, or from a foreign ambassador's residence in the area of Embassy Row in Northwest, Washington, D.C. A brief photo opportunity for the media at the top of the staircase will occur.
In the late 19th century, the term state dinner became synonymous with a dinner hosted by the president honoring a foreign head of state. The first visiting head of state to attend a state dinner at the White House was King David Kalakaua of the Kingdom of Hawaii, who was on a state visit of the United States, hosted by Ulysses S. Grant on 12 December 1874. The restoration of the White House by the architectural firm McKim, Mead, and White in 1902 created a more proper setting for official entertainment to occur. When the president's office moved to the newly constructed West Wing, the Neoclassical remodeling of the Executive Residence's state rooms gave Theodore Roosevelt a perfect venue reflecting the United States' growing power and influence around the world. While the White House underwent a complete interior reconstruction from 1948 to 1952, President Truman and Bess Truman lived at Blair House and state dinners were held in local hotels in the nation's capital. Long banquet tables were always used in the State Dining Room prior to the administration of John F. Kennedy. However, these were permanently discarded by Jacqueline Kennedy and replaced with round tables which could seat a far greater number of guests, approximately 120 to 140, in such a tight and confined space. To this day, presidents and first ladies continue to add their own personal touches and flair in entertaining foreign guests of state at the White House, having full access to the vermeil collection of gilded candelabras and flatware, the President's House crystal pattern, as well as the priceless collection of White House china which dates from the James Monroe administration to the George W. Bush administration, for use at a state dinner. Sequence of events
 During a state dinner, honor guards and color guards in full dress uniform from all branches of the United States Armed Forces are dispatched for ceremonial duty at the White House. At the North Portico entrance of the White House, the President of the United States and the First Lady of the United States formally greet the visiting head of state and his or her spouse, who have arrived in a motorcade from Blair House, the traditional guest quarters of foreign heads of state and dignitaries, or from a foreign ambassador's residence in the area of Embassy Row in Northwest, Washington, D.C. A brief photo opportunity for the media at the top of the staircase will occur.