King Charles’ strict diet rule he breaks at Easter

Easter Sunday has long been a special day in the royal calendar. From stories of Queen Victoria’s Easter egg hunts for her children, to the modern-day royals attending Easter service at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, it’s always been an occasion centred on family, faith and warmth.

It’s also heavily centred on food, with Easter Sunday marking a fantastic opportunity for the royal family to gather as a whole and sit down for a beautiful meal while spending quality time with one another. This is a big change for the monarch, who typically never eats lunch.

But what exactly is on the menu?

The royals prefer to dine in private so sadly, we don’t have a seat at the table to marvel at the culinary delights on offer.

However, former royal chef Darren McGrady has spoken to HELLO! and other publications in the past to give us an idea of their Easter menu.

What do the royals eat on Easter Sunday?

In keeping with tradition, the royals are served a roast lamb lunch on Easter Sunday.

In Christian and Protestant belief, serving lamb over Easter has long been a symbol of the ‘sacrificial lamb’ mentioned in the Old Testament, but is also eaten in remembrance of Jesus as the ‘Lamb of God’ who sacrificed himself on the cross.

It’s a tradition that has been occurring over decades, with Darren even previously revealing that the late Queen Elizabeth II would get first dibs on the meat since she preferred hers well-cooked.

The chef also previously revealed that the royals would be served an option of a side salad.

After a hearty roast lamb lunch served with all the trimmings, the royals make room for a second course of cheese and fruit, in particular, Windsor Cheese made at the Windsor Dairy.

Royal Easter desserts

Darren previously explained that they would enjoy white Windsor peaches, grown on the estate, for dessert. 

It didn’t stop there. In a previous interview with TIME, Darren explained that during his tenure between 1982 and 1993, the chefs would gather to make hot cross buns that would then be sent to the royals for afternoon tea which they would have shortly after their cheese course.

He also told TIME that the royals would enjoy a “huge” selection of decorated chocolate eggs and that Her Late Majesty was a “total chocoholic”. 

However, the same can’t be said for King Charles, who, according to Darren, is “not a huge fan of chocolate at all”.

The King famously does not eat lunch, though we’re sure he’d make an exception for such a tempting menu of Easter delights.

In fact, Darren previously confirmed this was the case, stating the monarch “adored” eating lamb.

Meanwhile, he royal’s abnormal eating pattern has even been acknowledged by Clarence House in a list of 70 facts released for the King’s (formerly Prince Charles) 70th birthday in 2018.

Without explanation, number 20 on the list is: “The Prince does not eat lunch.”

Easter royal traditions that have been passed down the generations

In previous years, Prince William and Princess Kate have taken great joy in setting up Easter egg hunts for their children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis – so there’s certainly no shortage of chocolate indulgence in the royals’ Easter itinerary.

In 2024, the Wales family missed out on public-facing Easter celebrations as Kate was undergoing preventative chemotherapy treatment at the time. 

We suspect they’re looking forward to returning to their usual Easter routine this year.