Robert Irwin has apologised to a Coffs Harbour restaurant following for an accidental dine and dash, after he was swarmed by fans as he got his lunch in the NSW coastal city.

The wildlife warrior, 21, is currently on a road trip down the east coast of Australia, with him passing through the small city, on the mid North Coast, stopping at the Jetty Pavilion.

Irwin, sitting in his car, told his 7.6 million Instagram followers what happened, admitting he forgot to pay for his salad.

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“I’m road tripping down the east coast of Australia at the moment. I stopped in at Coffs Harbour, beautiful coastal town in NSW,” Irwin began, in his typically charming tone.

“I ordered a takeaway salad. It turned into a bit of a frenzy; it was a little bit of a flurry there for a minute.”

Irwin said the restaurant was “super fast” with his lunch order, as he greeted fans.

He continued: “I made sure I said ‘hi’ to absolutely everyone. Cheers, thanks so much, see you later.

“The next morning, I wake-up and realise, I never paid for my salad.

“I did the old dine and dash, and I didn’t even realise I had done it. I felt terrible.”

For their trouble, Irwin gave the restaurant a shout-out on his wildly popular Instagram, ensuring to tag the local business, and requesting his own followers to follow the Jetty Pavilion.

“The Jetty Pavillion rocks! I am so sorry again and thank you for being so cool,” he wrote.

“Guys, go give them some love, let’s see how many new followers we can get these legends.”

The Jetty Pavilion said it was no harm done by the reality star, praising him for his visit.

“Thank you soooo much for visiting our venue we’re honestly blown away. Being from a humble little coastal town, it means the world to us to have you stop by,” the business wrote in part.

“We’re all huge fans and truly appreciate the shoutout.

“We can only imagine how hard it must be to enjoy a quiet meal without being bombarded so thank you again for choosing us, and no stress about missing the payment.

“We’d absolutely love to have you back anytime ... We might even name a salad after you.”

Irwin said he definitely be visiting Coffs Harbour again in the near future and when he does he will return to the Jetty Pavilion and pay for the salad.

The restaurant declined his offer to pay over the phone when he called and apologied, saying they “love what he does” and just wanted a positive review.