Queen Elizabeth Banned Garlic from Buckingham Palace

There are a lot of perks to being a royal. Queen Elizabeth II apparently drinks Champagne every day, is surrounded by adorable corgis, and owns so many diamonds her jewelry collection has its own curatorial staff. But news came out this past week that she never, ever eats garlic. Living in a castle sounds lovely, but it doesn’t seem worth it for a lifetime without garlic.

Two former royal chefs have confirmed that the Queen banned garlic from Buckingham palace entirely.

“We can never serve anything with garlic or too much onions,” chef Darren McGrady told Recipes Plus. McGrady cooked for the royal family for 15 years and is the author of Eating Royally: Recipes and Remembrances from a Palace Kitchen.

“The Queen is a wonderful lady, the royal family are wonderful people, but they’re missing out on garlic because at Buckingham Palace you don’t cook with garlic. I suppose, in case you get the royal burp,” former Buckingham Palace chef John Higgins told the Canadian National Post.

Higgins also cooked for the Queen’s corgis as though they were furry little VIPs. He said he once put their rabbit through the meat grinder instead of chopping it by hand, because he figured dogs don’t know the difference. They might not have noticed if their meat was ground or diced, but the Queen sure did. Higgins says she sent the dog food back and he had to remake the whole dish by hand.

The Queen keeps very high standards for herself and her pets, but a lifetime without garlic sounds brutal. No garlic chicken? No roast garlic? Nobody enjoys bad breath, especially around strangers and dignitaries, but garlic is a kitchen staple. Roasting garlic is one of the most mouth-watering aromas imaginable, and it makes everything so much more flavorful.

Maybe the queen should try this

“date-friendly” garlic