A former royal chef has revealed that the Christmas and New Year’s dinners at the British royal family’s celebrations always feature traditional dishes that some may find “boring.”

Darren McGrady, a former royal chef who worked for the late Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Diana, prepared approximately seven Christmas dinners for the royal family during his career. He cooked everything from hearty breakfasts to traditional lunches, afternoon teas, and festive dinners, serving royal members such as Prince William, Princess Kate, King Charles, Queen Camilla, and others.

According to Darren, on Christmas Day, the men are served a full English breakfast, which includes eggs, bacon, mushrooms, smoked herring, and roasted pig’s kidneys. However, the royal women are said to prefer a “light breakfast” consisting of sliced fruit, half a grapefruit, toast, and coffee delivered to their rooms. Traditionally, the family attends church before returning for lunch.

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“The meals stay exactly the same year after year. It’s really boring—no ham or anything else, just the traditional turkey. We would prepare three turkeys for the Queen and her family in the royal dining room, one for the children’s room. About 100 staff members would also eat turkey, so we’d make sure to prepare extra for lunch,” he told Hello!

According to Darren, the Queen and senior royal members dine in the main dining room, while the younger princes and princesses have their meals in the children’s room, cared for by nannies. “The children always eat in the children’s room until they are old enough to behave properly at the dining table. With the Queen, there was never any shouting or throwing food in the room. The children’s place is in their designated room, and the nannies take care of them,” the former chef explained.

Darren further revealed that the royal family would enjoy turkey with several types of stuffing, such as sage and onion, chestnuts, and traditional side dishes like roast potatoes, mashed potatoes, beets, and Brussels sprouts. For dessert, they would have Christmas pudding.

“The pudding is made in large bowls, decorated with holly, drenched in spirits, and then brought into the royal dining room by the palace manager. It’s very traditional,” Darren shared. After lunch, the royal family would take a walk around Sandringham Estate before returning to watch the Queen’s speech. Soon after, they would gather for afternoon tea, which always includes a Yule log chocolate cake, a variation of chocolate birthday cake, scones, mince pies, various sandwiches, and Christmas cakes.

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“We’d make a large Christmas cake for the Queen and the royal family, then a smaller one for the children’s room of Prince William, Prince Harry, Princess Beatrice, and Princess Eugenie. It was always fruitcake with marzipan, iced fruit cake, and traditional fruit cakes,” the former chef recalled.

The final meal of the day would be a buffet dinner, which Darren described as “more elaborate” than lunch. This was also the only time the chef would enter the dining room to carve the meat. “The buffet was when they’d bring out all the dishes. When I was there, Harrods would always provide them with a piece of foie gras en croute (goose liver). They’d also have a piece of Stilton cheese. We would open it up, use a fork to separate the top, and pour wine into it. It made for a beautiful, luxurious feast with crackers and a large decorative York ham. The Queen would always ask the butler to pour the Chef’s drink and raise a toast to thank the chef for serving the royal family throughout the year,” he recalled.

As for foie gras, after his ascension to the throne, King Charles made the decision to ban this dish from royal meals to support efforts against animal cruelty, with alternatives being served instead.

A Close Relationship with Princess Diana

Darren, the author of Eating Royally, also worked for the late Princess Diana until her passing in 1997. He witnessed her two sons, William and Harry, growing up at Kensington Palace.

“I always enjoyed it when Princess Diana was in the kitchen. She would often come in and was fond of crepe soufflé for dessert. I always made sure to include it on the menu, knowing it was her favorite. She would have lunch and then come down to the kitchen after everyone had left the table. One time, she asked, ‘Is there any crepe soufflé left? I love it, but I’m too shy to ask for more in front of the Queen.’ I knew in advance, so I always placed it in the oven to reheat, waiting for her to come down,” he fondly remembered.