The highlight of any state visit to the U.K. is the glamorous banquet held to honor the Royal Family's visiting guests, and French president Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte Macron, will enjoy a night of diamonds and fine dining during their visit to Windsor Castle on Tuesday, July 8. From the seating arrangements to the menu choices, every detail will be finely choreographed by palace staff—and now, a former royal chef is revealing some of the fascinating behind-the-scenes details of state banquets.
Speaking on behalf of Heart Bingo, Darren McGrady—who spent 15 years cooking for the Royal Family—shared the intense amount of planning involved in such an event. "We’d get likes, dislikes, and dietary restrictions from the Foreign Office, then plan four menus and send them to The Queen—she’d choose one," he said, referring to Queen Elizabeth.
McGrady continued that the kitchen staff would inspect everything for perfection. "If we needed 96 pears, they’d send 250, and we’d check each one for ripeness and blemishes," he said. "Same with meats—everything had to be perfect."
Buckingham Palace plays host to several state banquets a year, but the Macrons will dine at Windsor Castle.
The former palace chef revealed that the banquets would include "four courses plus dessert—dessert being fruit after pudding for the royals" and that the actual state banquet night wasn't the only event they had to plan for while serving visiting world leaders.
“Normally there would be 10 chefs, but for a state banquet all 20 chefs were on duty all week," he explained. "It wasn’t just the banquet—it was state banquet week. The visiting dignitary arrived Tuesday and had an arrival lunch, room prep—and the banquet that night."
McGrady continued that the chefs would also prepare breakfast, with meals "delivered to all rooms like a hotel," and that some guests "brought their own chefs."
The Princess of Wales is seen toasting to South African president Cyril Ramaphosa at a state banquet in 2022.
The Macrons can look forward to a French meal on July 8, as "first courses were often traditional French cuisine" at royal banquets, per McGrady. The menus are also printed in French, a longstanding royal tradition.
Unsurprisingly for local, organic food champion King Charles, much of the food served at state banquets comes from royal properties—and even straight from their fishing rods. "Traditionally for state banquets we used indigenous produce, but with 156 people we didn’t always have enough of what Prince Charles or the Queen Mother had caught fly fishing in the River Dee," McGrady said, adding that the chefs would also use "guinea fowl" and other "farm produce."
As for the other courses, the former palace chef shared that there was a fish course—"you’d often see quenelles or quills of fish like quenelle of halibut with lobster sauce"—along with "a basic salad course" and dessert.
“The Queen loved ice cream or chocolate desserts," he revealed. "Prince Charles (now King Charles) isn’t a fan of chocolate, so it never appeared for him. He preferred fruits and cheese courses."
