The Prince of Wales, 43, stopped by the Walnut Tree Inn in Wiltshire, England, for lunch on Thursday, Nov. 27.<\/p>\n
“He was a pleasure to serve, very down to earth, the whole group were,” said pub owner William Friend-James.<\/p>\n
William visited the town of Mere for business regarding the Duchy of Cornwall, the valuable estate that he inherited<\/a> after his father King Charles<\/a> ascended to the throne in 2022. Worth over $1 billion, the Duchy of Cornwall includes farmland, property and commercial businesses that span over 20 counties in England and provides funds for the heir and their public works.<\/p>\n The Walnut Tree Inn is on Duchy of Cornwall land, per local newspaper Wiltshire Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n “It was a working lunch,” said Friend-James.<\/p>\n Friend-James told the Daily Mail<\/a> that a table had been booked a week ago for nine people on two separate tables, but no one knew that the booking was in fact for royalty.<\/p>\n \u201cEveryone was a bit shocked when the Prince of Wales walked in,\u201d Friend-James said. \u201cI didn’t recognize who he was with, but they were from the Duchy and there were six of them at one table having a meeting over lunch.\u201d<\/p>\n The owner said William ordered a homemade burger, fries and a lemonade, while others in his group of six had the homemade pie and sea bass.<\/p>\n On the pub\u2019s menu<\/a>, the “Walnut Tree Burger” costs \u00a318.95 \u2014 around $25 \u2014 and comes in a brioche bun with fries, Emmental cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle, coleslaw and relish.<\/p>\n According to the Wiltshire Times, William posed for a photo with regulars Gary Fermor and Nick Lowe and staff member Lisa James, who served him.<\/p>\n \u201cSomebody asked for a photo and his security guards said no but then he walked to the loos [restrooms] by himself and Lisa asked him if he minded having a photo and he said yes,” Friend-James told the Daily Mail.<\/p>\n Daniel Jones\/PA Images via Getty<\/p>\n Prince William surprised Aston Villa fans at a pub in Birmingham, England, in January 2025<\/p>\n The photo was posted by the pub on their Facebook page<\/a> with the caption, \u201cIt was our great pleasure to host HRH Prince of Wales for lunch at the Walnut Tree Inn yesterday, a big shout out to Lisa, Grace and the kitchen team for looking after him so well.\u201d<\/p>\n William\u2019s security team, who sat on a separate table to him, paid for the check and included a tip, Friend-James told PEOPLE.<\/p>\n Friend-James estimates that the group was at the pub for around two hours, per the Wiltshire Times.<\/p>\n \u201cThey weren\u2019t bothered by anyone, and they had a lovely time,\u201d he said of the prince’s visit, adding that the group \u201chad a good meeting around the corner.\u201d<\/p>\n Can’t get enough of PEOPLE’s Royals coverage? Sign up for our free Royals newsletter<\/a> to get the latest updates on Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle and more! <\/p>\n The Prince of Wales\u2019 surprise visit comes months after he joined fellow Aston Villa fans for another surprise pub meetup<\/a> \u2014\u00a0 and bought them a round!<\/p>\n After wrapping up a royal engagement for the College of Paramedics in Birmingham, England, in January, William made a pit stop at a local pub in the city where his soccer team is based.<\/p>\n The royal organized the meetup of Aston Villa fans at Wetherspoons before the soccer team’s game later that day.<\/p>\n![\"Daniel](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/a28573bb4156b057de05dd89da9537dd.jpeg\"\/)
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