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King Charles is celebrating his 78th birthday on Nov. 14 and announced that he will be marking the occasion with music legend Sir Elton John.

Reuters reported the king will join the singer for a special episode of John’s Apple Music radio show, Rocket Hour, marking both the king’s birthday and the 50th anniversary of his youth charity, The King’s Trust.

Now that’s out of the bag; here are some other revelations about King Charles and his birthday.

If you’re wondering why the king’s birthday was celebrated in June when he was actually born in November, well, that’s because the monarch marks two birthdays a year. The first is King Charles’ public birthday, known as Trooping the Colour. That always takes place in June, usually on the second Saturday of the month, for every British monarch.

The tradition dates back to King George II’s reign in 1748, when he decided to combine his official birthday celebrations with Britain’s annual military march, which took place in the summer. Like King Charles, King George II’s real birthday was in November, but he felt that time of year would be too cold in the U.K. for a public celebration. Therefore, King George II decided to change it to June when the weather was nicer so everyone could enjoy the big celebration in warmer temps.

Ahead of the king’s birthday, a former chef to the monarch is sharing that Charles is a big foodie and revealing what he used to cook for him.

Visen Anenden is a professional private chef with a career spanning 25 years. He trained in Michelin-starred kitchens and was King Charles and Queen Camilla’s head chef for nearly a decade. He worked at estates like Highgrove House and Balmoral Castle, managing seasonal, organic menus tailored to the king’s interest in sustainability.

Speaking on behalf of Heart Bingo Online, Anenden told Showbiz Cheat Sheet, “I cooked for Charles and Camilla’s birthdays. I did Charles’ 60th, which was huge and a massive deal. The event for that was phenomenal, and the organization that went into it. Everything was sourced from the estate. All the food is. It’s all off the estate, and nothing is brought in. It’s all seasonal, too.”

The chef explained that while the king “would never cook, he would come in and speak to you about the menus. He, without a doubt, was extremely interested in what he eats — he’s a real foodie. He always wants to know where something has come from, so menus were very particular. If it was game season, we would do a lot of game. 

“I would write menus daily and speak to him and Queen Camilla on a daily basis. They were both interested in what they ate and where it came from. It was an amazing job and phenomenal working for them. You really do learn a good lesson, and it’s like an encyclopedia of learning about seasonality, vegetables, and organic meats. You really learn how the farm-to-fork aspect works, and it’s a phenomenal lesson for a chef.”

And what is the monarch’s favorite dish?

“For King Charles, it was always a soufflé. He loved the soufflé,” Anenden shared. “They were savoury soufflés, and they were always served with a runny egg.”

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