Waitress Claims Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Left Montecito Restaurant After Being Asked to Wait for a Table

A reported encounter at a Montecito restaurant has resurfaced as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle face renewed questions about whether they could return to California just weeks after moving back to the U.K.

According to an unnamed waitress who spoke to the Express, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex once visited Honor Bar in Montecito expecting to be seated immediately. Instead, the couple were reportedly asked to put their names on the waiting list, like other customers.

The waitress claimed that Harry and Meghan were unhappy with having to wait and ultimately left the restaurant.

The reported encounter at Honor Bar

The incident reportedly took place after Harry and Meghan moved to Montecito in 2020.

The waitress told the Express that the couple arrived at the popular local establishment expecting to get a table. Instead, they were asked to join the waiting list.

“Everyone is treated the same here,” the server said, according to the report.

She claimed the couple became angry when they were told they would have to wait.

“They got angry and said they shouldn’t have to wait. Then they left and never came back,” she recalled.

Honor Bar describes its Montecito location as a small restaurant and bar on Coast Village Road, with walk-in dining rather than reservations.

The waitress also claimed that the couple later ordered food for takeout during her shift, with one of their staff members sent to collect the order.

The account is based on the recollection of an unnamed employee and has not been independently verified.

Other Montecito residents have described the couple’s relationship with the community

The restaurant story has been presented alongside other accounts from people who have lived or worked in Montecito and said Harry and Meghan generally kept their distance from the wider community.

One employee at the Montecito Country Mart, where Meghan reportedly visited on several occasions, said the couple stood out because of their security arrangements.

“They’re the only celebrities here who go around with bodyguards,” the employee said. “Other A-listers just as famous and likely richer than them walk around casually like any normal person.”

Mary Sheldon, a longtime Montecito resident and bookstore owner, offered a different observation. She said she rarely saw the former working royals themselves but noticed security vehicles around the neighborhood.

“I think they’re basically ignored, and if people come across them that’s fine, but I don’t think the locals seek them out in any way,” Sheldon said.

She added that she had seen black SUVs on her road.

Sheldon has previously spoken publicly about life in Montecito, a community where celebrity residents are familiar to locals. In an earlier interview with Sky News, she described the area as accustomed to famous residents and said Harry and Meghan generated particular interest because of their royal background.

Bruce Johnston recalled seeing the couple in town

Bruce Johnston, a former member of The Beach Boys who also lives near Harry and Meghan, also spoke about seeing the couple in Montecito.

Johnston described Harry as a “jerk” and recalled seeing the Duke and Duchess in the town center while they were sitting in the back of a car.

He also remembered being alarmed by their security detail.

“I was scared, however, when I saw their bodyguards with guns filling up their car with gas,” Johnston said.

His comments, like the other accounts, reflect an individual’s personal recollection rather than an independently established account of the couple’s conduct.

A returned bottle of wine became another point of criticism

Ciara Curtis, a local financial manager, said Harry and Meghan appeared to maintain their distance from the wider Montecito community.

Curtis recalled an incident involving a neighbor named Susan, who reportedly sent the couple a bottle of local wine and a handwritten note after they moved into the area. The gesture was intended as a welcome to the neighborhood.

According to Curtis, however, the unopened bottle and note were returned to Susan’s doorstep the following morning by members of Harry and Meghan’s security team.

Curtis viewed the response negatively.

“They could have easily given away the bottle of wine to a member of their staff and written a two-paragraph ‘thank you’ note back to Susan,” she said. “But the thoughtless act of brushing aside a small act of kindness set the tone for how they behaved and how they were perceived after that.”

Harry and Meghan’s possible return to Montecito

The restaurant story has resurfaced at a particularly notable moment for the Sussexes.

Harry and Meghan recently returned to the U.K. with their children after spending about six years living in California. Their future in Britain has since become linked, at least in media reports, to the ongoing question of Harry’s publicly funded security.

The Royal and VIP Executive Committee, known as RAVEC, is reviewing the couple’s security arrangements following their return to the U.K. The Guardian reported that separate risk assessments are being conducted for Harry and Meghan, with Harry’s review having begun in July. Meghan’s assessment is her first since the couple stopped working as senior royals in 2020.

ITV News likewise reported that RAVEC had informed Harry that his security situation would receive a full review now that he and his family were living in Britain.

The couple’s security arrangements have been a long-running issue. Harry previously challenged the decision to remove his automatic police protection after stepping down as a working royal, but his legal efforts to have that protection restored were unsuccessful. The current review is being conducted separately from those earlier court proceedings.

Reports cited by the original story said that if Harry does not receive the level of taxpayer-funded security he has sought, the family could return to Montecito. A decision from RAVEC was expected “within weeks.”

For now, that outcome remains unresolved. What is established is that Harry and Meghan have returned to Britain, their security arrangements are under review, and their long-running ties to Montecito continue to attract attention.

The account from the Honor Bar waitress adds another reported episode to the broader collection of stories about the couple’s years in the California community, but the claim about the restaurant encounter remains the recollection of one unnamed employee rather than a verified account from Harry or Meghan.