Queen Elizabeth II's 'very strict' rule over meal times in palace as truth behind 'popular belief' revealed
The queen's favourite meals have been revealedQueen Elizabeth II used to have a simple diet, yet apparently had a very strict rule regarding dinner time at the palace.
A former chef of the late queen has revealed all in a new interview, offering a rare glimpse behind palace doors.
Meals with Queen Elizabeth II were a ‘massive operation’
Speaking to Heart Bingo, former royal chef Darren McGrady, who spent 15 years cooking for the royals, has lifted the lid on what it was really like working in the kitchens of Buckingham Palace.
“The royal household was a massive operation. When I was there, we had 300 staff,” he said.
Meal times were fixed. The queen was very strict and disciplined.
“The royal family was big at the time, with nurseries for Beatrice, Eugenie, William, Harry, Zara, and Peter. During holidays like Christmas and Easter, all the extended family – Gloucesters, Kents, aunts, and uncles – would come, so there were many royals to cook for,” he continued.
“The kitchens also catered for the staff, with five different dining rooms. It was like Downton Abbey – you had the servants’ hall, the steward’s room, the officials’ dining room, the senior officials’, the household, and finally the royal dining room.”
The queen’s menu
Darren continued, revealing that the queen had her own menu!
“The queen had a red leather-bound menu book. We’d suggest menus three days in advance so we could prepare properly. She would choose her dishes unless it was a state banquet, in which case the Foreign Office might get involved to ensure dishes were culturally appropriate for visiting dignitaries,” he explained.
“Despite having access to luxury items like caviar and foie gras, the queen loved to showcase indigenous British produce like salmon from the River Dee or venison from Sandringham,” he revealed.
Darren was also asked what the queen’s favourite dishes were.
Queen Elizabeth II’s favourite meals
“For the queen, it always came back to indigenous produce – partridge or venison from Sandringham, grouse from Balmoral. She had a sweet tooth and loved dark chocolate, especially anything over 60% cocoa,” Darren revealed.
“Any dessert with chocolate on the menu was sure to be chosen. Her birthday cake was a chocolate ganache cake using the same recipe every year, a recipe dating back to Queen Victoria’s chef.”
He also revealed that the queen had a strict schedule for mealtimes.
“Meal times were fixed. The queen was very strict and disciplined. Contrary to popular belief, she never called for food at odd hours. They had set meals, and if they wanted something in between, there was always fruit or chocolates in their rooms,” he said.
“The queen’s breakfast was at 9 a.m., served in her room. She’d help herself to cereal from a Tupperware container, especially Special K, even though there were 20 chefs available to cook anything,” Darren explained.
“Prince Philip, on the other hand, enjoyed more adventurous breakfasts like deviled kidneys. Lunch was at 1 p.m., and dinner at 8:15 p.m. – 8:30 if the Queen Mother was present.”
When asked if they’d ever made an extravagant meal for the queen, Darren said: “We didn’t do anything over-the-top extravagant. The queen was very frugal, likely due to her wartime upbringing. Ingredients like lobster, caviar, and foie gras were reserved for state banquets. On normal days, she was perfectly happy with comfort food, so we cooked meals like cottage pie.”
Darren also revealed that the queen wasn’t a fan of garlic or strong onions. She reportedly viewed them as “anti-social”.
Read more: Queen Elizabeth II’s ‘brutal clapback’ after Prince Philip told her ‘do shut up’
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