King Charles and Queen Camilla visited The Warehouse in Newtownards, Northern Ireland, on the penultimate day of their three-day trip. The former pub has been transformed into a community hub that provides free food supplies from surplus supermarket ingredients and other essentials to anyone in need.
Operations manager Meghan Wiemann showed the King the daily supplies from Asda and Tesco, explaining that the hub prepares around 150 meals each day in boxes for people to take home. She noted there is no criteria for using the service, and even the King could take bread if he wished. Charles learned that all food is surplus that would otherwise be wasted and asked about creative recipes, being told they have made dishes like spicy peach chicken.
In the kitchen, head chef Dawn Stewart invited the King to help mix a gluten-free chocolate cake. He stirred the mixture, sniffed the whisk, and remarked, “I like the smell,” after being told it contained chocolate powder. The cake was a way to use up eggs and flour.
Queen Camilla joined her husband later and was introduced to a project called “Blind Date with a Book,” where books are wrapped in plain paper with a short synopsis. Community manager David Haire gave her one that read: “From mountains to lakes, from country to shore – the sound of winds, the call of birds…” In return, she gave him a book wrapped in paper bearing the royal cypher and told participants, “You must join my reading room.”
In the garden, the couple met volunteers, including young adults with learning disabilities from East Coast Day Opportunities. They presented the King with a framed picture of stones decorated like bees. Charles asked if they were made of clay but was told they were beach stones, to which he replied, “Thank you very much, I’m very grateful. You must have a very steady hand.”
Before leaving, the couple cut a cake together, with Charles encouraging everyone to have some with lunch. Meghan Wiemann later said, “It was nerve-wracking beforehand but they were both so down to earth and friendly. They seemed really impressed with what we are doing here helping the community.”
