Staff at a restaurant in St Albans said Hollywood actor Tom Cruise ordered spicy chicken tikka masala when he dined there yesterday.

Darshit Hora, the manager of Veer Dhara, in St Peters Street, said Cruise and eight companions visited the restaurant yesterday at around 10.30pm.

Mr Hora said the two bodyguards with him asked him to make sure the meal was a low key affair.

The bill came to £220.85 and the group left a £79.50 tip.

The group, which is thought to have included his eldest daughter Isabella, sat at the back of the restaurant. They declared they were really hungry and ordered the starter and mains to be served at the same time.

They ordered fish and chicken starters, two lobsters, two chicken tikka masalas, two lamb dishes, along with rice and bread sides. Cruise ordered fizzy water and sat facing the kitchen with his back to the restaurant.

Staff said he asked for his chicken tikka masala to be spicy.

He was wearing a light blue pullover, jeans and a leather jacket. Staff said he seemed relaxed but quieter than the rest of the group.

Two drivers waited outside and had coffee.

Waiter Ashish Srivasdava, 23, who lives in Ladies Grove, St Albans, and who has worked there just over a year, said: “I was shaking I was so nervous. At first I couldn’t look in his eyes.

"When I greeted him I was smiling and so was he and that’s when I realised it was him.

“I regret not asking for a photo or autograph now but at the time it wasn’t professional."


He said Cruise asked whether he could pay for American Express, and when he found out he couldn't, another member of the group paid. The actor reportedly told them he was staying 15 miles away.