Hollywood legend Richard Gere surprised a Hertfordshire restaurant when he dropped in for a meal on Tuesday evening.
The Pretty Woman actor 74, stopped by the St James restaurant for a meat-free tasting menu with friends.
Owner Alfonso Lacava said he had no idea the actor – who turned up with two others – was going to be dining.
He said: ‘Out of the blue, a chauffeur came outside and Richard Gere came to have a meal.
‘Everybody was shocked – we didn’t expect it. It was incredible to have him in our restaurant.
Hollywood legend Richard Gere surprised a Hertfordshire restaurant when he dropped in for a meal on Tuesday evening (pictured with guests and restaurant owner Alfonso Lacava)
The Pretty Woman actor 74, stopped by the St James restaurant for a meat-free tasting menu with friends (pictured at The Red Sea International Film Festival May 18)
The actor is in the UK filming The Agency, an adaptation of a French spy thriller ‘Le Bureau’ (pictured with his wife Alejandra Silva at Cannes Film Festival May 17)
‘To have a person like that in a local restaurant is just wonderful. We’re not like The Grove where you have famous people all the time.
‘To choose us is absolutely fantastic.’
According to the owner, Richard enjoyed a meat-free tasting menu after asking for advice and said he had loved it.
The actor has been vegetarian for more than 30 years and is a practising Tibetan Buddhist, a change he made after meeting the 14th Dalai Lama in 1978.
Mr Lacava was over the moon to have the famous face grace his local restaurant but said he is no stranger to stars.
In 2007 the restaurateur had the England football team dine in but said that Richard was ‘top of the list’ and a real gentleman.
The St James tasting menu costs £60 and includes delicious choices such as an ‘Oriental duck salad served with red pepper coulis and stir-fried vegetables, in teriyaki sauce’ and a ‘basil pannacotta with strawberry and balsamic vinegar salad, morello cherries ice cream and merengue’.
The actor is in the UK filming The Agency, an adaptation of a French spy thriller ‘Le Bureau’ about an undercover CIA agent forced to return to normal life in London and report to the London Station Chief, played by Richard.
But his career, his real identity and his mission are put in jeopardy when a former lover from his undercover life finds him and they reignite their romance.
Filming began in June and the production also stars Michael Fassbender, 47, and Jeffrey Wright, 58.
The new show is the American Gigolo star’s first major television role as a series regular, although he has starred in previous television limited series, including 1994’s And The Band Played On, for which he received an Emmy nomination.
Owner Alfonso Lacava said he had no idea the actor – who turned up with two others – was going to be dining but revealed they enjoyed the meat-free tasting menu
Richard Gere in a rare family photo with wife Alejandra Silva, 41, and their children in a sweet post shared by his spouse for Father’s Day (June 16)
The actor’s latest film, O Canada, with Uma Thurman and Jacob Elordi, debuted at the Cannes Film Festival in May and his other project – a romantic drama The Making Of, will see him star alongside Diane Keaton and Blake Lively.
Last month, the actor enjoyed some rest and relaxation and was spotted posing in a very rare family portrait.
The actor was pictured with wife Alejandra Silva, 41, and their children in a family photo that was posted on her Instagram.
The internal Affairs actor can be seen smiling happily in the snap while posing on the beach with his family.
The pair share two children together, son Alexander, five, and a three-year-old boy whose name has not been shared publicly.
Alejandra also has a child from a previous relationship who is seen in the image, while Gere shares son Homer James, 24, who was not pictured, with ex-wife Carey Lowell and is a stepfather to her daughter, Hannah.
Alejandra, who shared the image on her Instagram account, blurred out the faces of all three children, before posting the photo with a gushing tribute to the actor.
‘Happy Father’s Day, to the most wonderful dad four boys could ever wish for,’ Silva’s caption read.
‘Your endless patience, love, and dedication are truly remarkable’.
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