'She loved her food': Cork chef Ross Lewis impressed Britain's queen with state banquet

Britain's Queen Elizabeth as she made her speech at the state dinner in Dublin Castle in 2011. Picture: Maxwells Dublin

When Michelin-starred chef Ross Lewis was invited to cook for Britain's Queen Elizabeth at a state banquet in Dublin in May 2011, he expected lots of pressure and lots of security.

There was pressure — but the security as he and his teamed toiled in a modified kitchen at Dublin Castle was not quite what he expected.

“I got the impression that they implicitly trusted us. I really expected huge security in the kitchen and there wasn’t,” says Lewis, Co Cork-born co-owner and head chef at Chapter One in Dublin.

“There was an auld guard walked through once or twice and that was it.” 

Ross Lewis planned the four-course dinner for 180 people. Picture: Moya Nolan

The menu was planned in consultation with the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Taoiseach and representatives of Áras an Uachtaráin.

It began with smoked and cured wild salmon followed by an Angus beef plate.

“I was charged to go off and do a menu. I tried to make it a patchwork quilt of as many counties in Ireland as I could. They were keen to showcase Irish beef as a main course.”

 Buckingham Palace was consulted but the details were left largely to the Irish government.

We would have sent them the menu. Their side didn’t have a huge input other than to say the queen doesn’t like spices.” 

 With Mr Lewis and his team working under huge pressure, his memories of the evening are largely a blur.

“It was 180 people. We were given the instruction — four courses. That was to include a cheese.

"We were to serve it all in an hour and 10 minutes. Four courses for 180 people in an hour and 10 minutes."

Banquets for the queen have an interesting protocol in that, the moment she had finished her meal, everyone else was expected to down cutlery too.

Queen Elizabeth with President Mary McAleese at the state dinner in Dublin Castle. Picture: Maxwells Dublin

“When they serve those banquets, she gets served first. As she finishes, everyone else at the top table, whether they’re finished or not, they just clear when she finishes.

"And then they clear table two and three left and right. There were a lot of Irish people taking their time through their courses [only] to have it whipped away because it was all timed.” 

The morning afterwards, Lewis received a phone call from the President.

“I woke up and was a bit groggy. Mary McAleese was on the phone. She rang and said I just want to say how much I appreciate last night. She was so magnanimous.” 

The president also informed Lewis that Elizabeth had cleared her plate.

“The president said she loved her food.”