The Waterside Inn in Bray, Berkshire, may look like an ordinary country pub, but with guests splurging tens of thousands for a single meal, it's anything but. The three-Michelin-star restaurant, founded by legendary French chef Michel Roux in 1972, attracts business leaders, sports stars, foreign officials, and even the royals, according to its assistant sommelier Nico Di Razza.

Speaking to Express.co.uk, the Neapolitan wine expert revealed the eye-watering sums he'd seen spent by the rich and powerful at the Waterside Inn, since he started working there 18 months ago. “One of the regulars organised the whole Qatar World Cup. He’s one of our wealthiest”, Nico said.

“He stayed with us for three days.. and three nights. Dined with us - lunch and dinner. When he comes he usually rents the whole private dining room for himself. It’s just him and his wife,” he said. Asked what such opulence cost the Qatari official, Nico explained: “[He spent] close to £250,000 altogether for the three days and three nights and the meals - and he doesn’t even drink. So it’s just food and rent, basically.”

When our reporter pressed him on who the rich Qatari government official was, the man from Italy explained: "I don’t think I’m allowed to disclose." He added that guests at The Waterside Inn, which sits on the banks of the Thames as it meanders westwards, don't visit the restaurant to "flash their wealth".

"They’re just there to have a good meal and be quiet", he said. "I think that’s the point of the Waterside Inn. It’s tucked away so people enjoy the privacy, that’s why they come to us." Besides foreign dignitaries, "footballers" and "big CEOs from big companies", members of the "Royal Family... come quite often", Nico said.

Asked which guest had spent the most on one dinner, Nico said: “One of our Russian guests, table of two - £35k.” He was quick to emphasise that guests had likely parted with far more, but that £35,000 was the most expensive bill he’d seen for a solitary meal in the year-and-a-half he’d worked at the restaurant.

Express.co.uk also spoke to the Boonvisuit family from Bangkok as they left the Waterside Inn. The family’s eldest son, Peem, told this website: “We came here just to eat in this restaurant.” His younger brother, Peak, who studies marketing at the London School of Economics said the four of them gorged on the £265-per-head three-course a la carte menu.

Incredibly, despite not boasting a post office, the Waterside Inn isn't the only restaurant in Bray with Michelin stars. In fact, there are two more with four between them, both owned by celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal.

The Fat Duck, which has menus priced between £225 and £450 per head, has three stars and The Hinds Head, which is far cheaper, has one. The Waterside Inn's cheapest menu is the two-course a la carte which costs £210 per-head.

Visitors to The Fat Duck, husband and wife-to-be Matthew Fehrsen and Caroline Blaylock, from Cape Town, South Africa, told Express.co.uk that they were in the UK for a wedding in the Cotswolds. Despite being in the country to celebrate another couple tying the knot, Caroline conceded: “One of our highlights is coming to The Fat Duck.”

Meanwhile, Laurence Hoare, who said he put on music festivals around the UK, was looking forward to £31 fish and chips in The Hinds Head.

“The English national dish is fish and chips and we all have it. Fish on a Friday and all that. Allegedly it is the best in the country,” he added.

So, if you're thinking of starting a restaurant, maybe open it somewhere other than Bray. That is, unless you're a Michelin-star chef.