Skip to main contentSkip to footer
Prince Charles And The Duchess Of Cornwall, On An Official Visit To Italy Attend A Slow Food Reception, In Rome. . (Photo by Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty Images)© Mark Cuthbert

Fit for a King! King Charles' lavish Easter Sunday lunch menu

What do the royal family eat on Easter Sunday? From roast lamb to Windsor cheese, Darren McGrady reveals the royal menu

Georgia Brown
Senior Lifestyle & Fashion Writer
March 27, 2024
Share this:

While many families are gearing up to prepare roast lunches and devour chocolate eggs, Easter Sunday may look a little different for the royal family this year. 

In light of King Charles' recent cancer diagnosis, and the Princess of Wales receiving preventive chemotherapy for cancer, annual celebrations are set to be far more low-key than in previous years. 

While the Wales family will not attend the Easter Matins Service at St George's Chapel, they may well choose to mark the occasion in private, spending time with their family behind the closed doors of Windsor Castle. 

King Charles and Queen Camilla wave after Maundy Thursday service© Getty
The King and Queen will attend a service at St George's Chapel on Easter Sunday

Former royal chef, Darren McGrady, gave a rare insight into the indulgent celebrations that occur on Easter Sunday, divulging everything on the menu at the royal residence…

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. 

The royal family are served roast lamb on Easter Sunday© Unsplash
The royal family are served roast lamb on Easter Sunday

"We'd go straight into the main course – a traditional roast lamb with seasonal vegetables," Darren told OK!, adding that the late Queen preferred to have her meat well done, so would always get first choice of slices. 

"They’d also have a compound salad served in a kidney dish attached to the plate – just some lettuce and cucumber with a little mint or some grated carrot and coriander," added the royal chef. Why it's served in a kidney dish, we're not sure. 

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.

"The most incredible sweet white Windsor peaches grew on the estate too in my day. We’d have to lock them away in the kitchens because everyone wanted to taste them. The Queen always looked forward to those, but she’d have to wait until they were in season," Darren added. 

The Wales family will not attend Easter service next week
The Wales family will not attend Easter service next week

As far as Easter eggs are concerned, the late Queen was known as a "total chocoholic" according to her royal chefs, so the sweet treats were no doubt on the menu for the monarch and her grandchildren over the Easter holiday. 

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 royal's Easter itinerary. 

Easter eggs were presented to Princess Charlotte and Prince George by the cookery school at Taylors of Harrogate  in 2016© Getty
Easter eggs were presented to Princess Charlotte and Prince George by the cookery school at Taylors of Harrogate in 2016

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

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

Sign up to HELLO Daily! for the best royal, celebrity and lifestyle coverage

By entering your details, you are agreeing to HELLO! Magazine User Data Protection Policy. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information, please click here.

More Food

See more