What does an American President drink after a tough day in the Oval Office?

During the Cuban Crisis, when the world was on the brink of mutually assured nuclear annihilation, John F Kennedy probably reached for his favourite of a Bloody Mary. And then another as rumours about his dalliance with Marilyn Monroe surfaced.

POTUS Restaurant’s cocktail list is inspired by a quite remarkable book: “Mint Juleps with Teddy Roosevelt: A Complete History of Presidential Drinking.” Sadly, there wasn’t a copy on the premises when I visited but surely there’s scope for some creative interior design there ..

Casting your eye over the menu you sense those early Presidents knew their booze. “George’s Old Porter”, with rye whisky recalls George Washington who owned his own whisky distillery. Whilst the “JQA – Dark and Decadent” recalls John Quincy Adam’s obsession with Madeira, he then added Mezcal and Tequila. Potent and smoky with interesting BBQ overtones. In comparison, tee-total Donald’s Coca Cola and Barrack with his beer seem like lightweights.

There’s a warm and welcoming club-like feel to POTUS Restaurant, sophisticated and sleek, with an oval shaped bar echoing that Oval Office in The White House.

A smooth saxophone jazzy soundtrack and evocative black-and-white portraits tell the story of a selection of America’s 45 presidents. A living flame fire, wall-embedded, and a swanky contemporary drop chandelier, create an uber-stylish ambience.

Home-sick yanks, based at the new American Embassy at Nine Elms, can drop in for a drink, a taste of home and nostalgic Americana. The Bar and Restaurant are so stars-and-stripes authentic that they could be the 53rd State.

And the name? POTUS was coined by a weary fingered stenographer, back in the 1890s, who was weary of tapping out President of the United States.

POTUS Restaurant is America on a plate. The menu reminds you that this vast land was peopled with immigrants welcomed by those immortal lines on the Statue of Liberty: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” Those hungry immigrants arrived with memories of the food of their homeland.

Executive chef Pablo Peñalosa Najera’s creativity upgrades those humble dishes of immigrants into fine-dining fit for a President and his First Lady. Adapting your diet to your new homeland is all part of assimilation into a new culture.

Najera’s vision sweeps from Chowder soup on the chilly Atlantic coast to Italian fishermen remembering growing up by the Mediterranean with a California Octopus Salad. Don’t worry too much about food miles, those baby octopus are Scottish not American. Admittedly the avocado has taken a longer journey, it just won’t grew in the Home Counties. Heading south to the Gulf of Mexico’s warm shores of Louisiana, the Cajun Chicken’s spicy rub is a reminder of the state’s French heritage.

Everything’s bigger in America and the Cowboy Steak, an Empire-State-Building hunk of prime beef, is guaranteed not to weigh-in at less than a heavyweight 30 ounces. It’s a wagons-rolling tribute to the cowboys on the endless prairies who feed a nation.

Mac and cheese, once a humble TV supper to chomp down whilst you caught up on “Frasier” or “Friends”, gets an upgrade too. Again, Najera takes a humble American Classic and by using three cheeses for the sauce, plus the option of adding a lobster makes it into a very special creation which dips its toes in a Lobster Bisque.

Come dessert – and it can’t come quick enough at POTUS – Najero gives some classics a classy makeover: its as if Mom’s Apple Pie has been through finishing school …

Bananas Foster is a decadent take on an Ol’ Favourite from the Deep South. The texture juxtaposition of gentle banana sponge caramelised in rum and brown sugar contrasts beautifully with a crumble crunch. It’s finished with coconut ice-cream for perfection. Similarly New York Baked Cheesecake is given a subtle kick with Eggnog Ice-cream.

After such an indulgent feast it may be difficult to step back into the real world, there maybe a breeze blowing along Victoria Embankment by the side of the Thames. Retiring to one of the Crowne Plaza hotel’s rooms, preferably with river view, is, if we are thinking in Presidential terms, a definitely viable policy strategy.