It might just be 2025’s most unexpected dinner date: Prince Harry and Doug Ford, eating high-end sushi together in Toronto.
The politician and the royal were spotted by entertainment journalist Shinan Giovani, who tweeted (Xed?) the spotting on Tuesday.
“Prince Harry sighting : seen dining inside Nobu here last night with Doug Ford while in Toronto for OREA Powerhouse Conference,” he wrote.
Nobu declined the Star’s request for comment about the dinner.
Here, he’s referring to a gathering for the real estate industry held at the Hilton Toronto on Monday.
The premier spoke at the conference, where per his own tweet he covered “our plan to protect Ontario’s economy and keep the dream of home ownership within reach by cutting red tape, lowering costs and working with municipalities to get more shovels in the ground.”
This happened on the same day, by the by, that the Star confirmed that his government had fired the entire board of RECO, the provincial real estate regulator.
As for Prince Harry? He was a speaker at OREA, too. Initially, the booking is a bit of a head-scratcher — perhaps they wanted his insight as a member of one of the largest land-owning families in the U. K.? — and the tabloid press pounced on this as evidence of his descent into C-list celebs.
“Cringeworthy,” is how the Daily Mail headlined it. “No wonder photos were banned.” (It is true that OREA have not released any images of Prince Harry at the event.)
That said: It’s an event with a track record of hiring notable keynote speakers, like Magic Johnson and Bill Clinton. News Nation, which sniped that the Prince wasn’t enough of a draw to sell out the conference, also claimed his fee could have been as much as $2 million, hardly the stuff of C-list reality star club appearance desperation.
Plus, according to someone who was in the room for his “in conversation” event, who spoke to Toronto Life, he wasn’t there to share his thoughts on the intricacies of urban planning. Instead, it was in his wheelhouse of topics, focusing on caring for your mental health as a leader.
Nobu has not confirmed the Ford-Sussex dinner date, but it’s likely they met at the conference and grabbed a bite after.
This is Prince Harry’s second visit to the city in a month, coming just weeks after he spent a few days here visiting with members of Canada’s armed forces, attending a charity gala for veterans and … apologizing for wearing a Dodgers hat during the World Series when he’s really a Jays fan at heart.
Perhaps this dinner was another stop on his apology tour?
