ENTERTAINMENTJenna Bush Hager Shades Dad George W. Bush for Having a 'Restless Personality' When Dining Out
On 'TODAY With Jenna & Friends,' Jenna Bush Hager revealed her father George W. Bush's strange order-ahead eating hack.
Aug. 26 2025, Published 3:32 p.m. ET
Jenna Bush Hager called out her dad, George W. Bush, for his odd dining habits.
During the Tuesday, August 26, episode of TODAY With Jenna & Friends, the talk show host, 43, exposed the former president, 79, for the way he goes about eating at restaurants.
Jenna admitted that her father calls eateries ahead of time to avoid spending too long at the table.
'TODAY With Jenna & Friends' has not been live for over a week.
"I'll tell you one thing my dad does recently. He likes an early situation. Sometimes, he'll order in — and I actually am opposed to this — sometimes, he'll call the restaurant and order the meal before," she revealed. "So he doesn't have to wait. He has a little bit of a restless personality. Sometimes, [her husband] Henry [Hager] and I will arrive, and their food [will be there]."
Jenna found out about her father's strange habit from one of his employees named Freddy.
"'I just want to let you know that he sent me the menu. Your dad likes to order before he goes out,'" she recalled the staff member telling her. "I was like, 'Uh, I guess I'll have the pasta alfredo?' It was like 3 p.m. on a Friday."
George W. Bush doesn't like spending too much time at restaurants.
Guest co-host Willie Geist was shocked by his friend's confession.
"Is that like a 45-minute meal?" he asked.
"Oh, it's sometimes 30. Henry and I are like, 'I guess we can stay for a nightcap because it's still sunny outside,'" Jenna quipped.
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Willie Geist guest co-hosted 'TODAY With Jenna & Friends.'
The media personality said she once dined out with an author who called in their meal ahead of time, and it was waiting for them when they arrived.
"Doesn't that defeat the point of going out to dinner?" Willie questioned. "It's supposed to be a social thing. Just order in at that point...with all due respect, Mr. President."
Why Is Jenna Bush Hager Absent From 'Today'?
Jenna Bush Hager is on summer break.
Jenna is currently taking a break from live tapings of TODAY With Jenna & Friends as she enjoys a luxe trip to Rome with her family. The media personality brought her husband and three kids — Mila, 13, Poppy, 9, and Hal, 5 — to Italy for a stay at Rome Cavalieri, A Waldorf Astoria Hotel.
In an August 25 Instagram post, the mom stunned in a plunging black-and-white printed dress on a balcony. She wrapped an arm around her husband, who sported a button-down shirt, trousers and a brown belt. The couple was positioned in front of a sweeping view of the city.
"10 minutes from Roma Center and heaven...pools and gardens to spend afternoons after touring!" she wrote about her hotel on her Instagram Story.
