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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Jennifer Newton

King Charles' cheeky kebab joke during takeaway visit and his secret to a great one

Most would assume that as monarch, King Charles is used to fine dining crafted by royal chefs.

But it appears he is also partial to a kebab - and has even shared his secret to getting a good one before cracking a joke about the takeaway dish.

It came as he met volunteers from the UK's Turkish community sending aid to their homeland, and expressed how "deeply sorry" he was following the devastating earthquake.

The monarch visited a west London charity to see for himself the efforts of residents working to help those left homeless after the natural disaster struck south-east Turkey and Syria last week, killing tens of thousands of people.

King Charles drops by a kebab shop on a visit to Hounslow in West London (PA)

While in Hounslow, he visited a kebab restaurant and takeaway co-owned by one of the senior members of the charity.

When he asked what meats were cooking, he was told lamb and chicken doner kebabs.

And according to The Telegraph, he then revealed that the "secret" to a good kebab is that "it’s all in the sauce".

He also asked the owner about his "secret ingredient" and cheekily pointed at the press covering the event and said with a laugh: "They probably will have a kebab."

Earlier, Umit Yalcin, Turkey’s ambassador to the UK, joined the head of state when he visited a makeshift depot organised by the West London Turkish Volunteers based in Hounslow.

Charles meets volunteers from the Turkish community in Hounslow collecting aid for people affected by the earthquakes in Turkey (Getty Images)
Volunteers have been packing and organising the transport of food, blankets and warm clothing (PA)

The diplomat said about the King: “He said he was deeply sorry, deeply sad, and he will pray for Turkey, for Syria and the people under that devastating earthquake."

The 7.8 magnitude earthquake and a later 7.5 quake, which both struck on February 6, have claimed the lives of more than 35,000 people in south-eastern Turkey and Syria, with the death toll expected to rise as buildings are finally cleared.

The natural disaster reduced thousands of homes and buildings to rubble as people slept, with scenes of the rescue effort reported by news channels across the globe.

Charles later visited Syria's House, a temporary Syrian community tent in Trafalgar Square (PA)
Charles is given a rose by one of those at Syria's House in Trafalgar Square (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

With the efforts of the authorities and NGOs now turning towards recovery and relief, the British public has helped the Disasters Emergency Committee Turkey-Syria Earthquake Appeal raise more than £74 million in a few days – including donations from the King and Queen Consort and the Prince and Princess of Wales.

Later Charles became visibly emotional when he visited a Trafalgar Square pop-up support centre for Syrians living in the capital who have been affected by the earthquake.

He toured Syria's House, a community tent which will be open for a week in Trafalgar Square, and met five people who have lost loved ones in the tragedy.

He greeted small groups of Syrians one by one and was offered traditional Syrian bitter coffee and dates.

Yazan Douedari, who was invited to the event through friends, said: "It was very nice to know that the King was here to support the Syrian people.

"The King was showing his support and was saying 'I can’t imagine how hard it has been for you'. He said 'it is terrible'. I saw that he was emotionally affected.

"It means a lot that he came here and is here to support the Syrian people, the victims and their families."

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