An exotic monkey escaped from a zoo last night - and headed straight for a meal of chips and apples at a McDonald's .

Stunned diners filmed the Goeldi's marmoset jumping from tables and tucking in to treats at the restaurant some nine miles from the zoo.

Police were called to the McDonald's in Gothenburg, Sweden, at around 10.40pm yesterday as the city's zoo alleged the mammal had been stolen.

Officers are now investigating reports of theft.

But clips and pictures were shared on social media of the cute monkey enjoying her night out.

Diners fed the monkey at the restaurant (
Image:
sanguineblack/Instagram)

"I see there was food monkeys usually prefer," wrote one diner.

"A runaway monkey sat down at a table in McDonald's," another added.

"So i spotted the "'Stolen' monkey in Mcdonalds omw to work. I guess she's lovin' it," a teenager posted.

Peter Nordengard, a police spokesman, said: "We think it's the same one [monkey that left the zoo], but I guess there aren't that many monkeys out and about at the moment.

"She didn't even dip her french fries in Béarnaise sauce.

"We'll have to sniff around a bit to see if anyone brought it there. The most plausible explanation seems to be that someone left it there.

"Our officers are investigating."

The monkey fled from a zoo and enjoyed a night out in McDonald's (
Image:
Aftonbladet)
Staff had to rush to the McDonald's to retrieve the runaway creature (
Image:
Aftonbladet)

Gothenburg science centre Universeum reported the monkey missing at around 12.30pm but it is unclear what the animal did in the hours before her meal.

"It is extremely sad what happened," said Daniel Roth, a zoologist at Universeum.

Staff were said to have dashed to the restaurant to retrieve the playful monkey.

The Goeldi's marmoset, a South American monkey, is a vulnerable species. It is black in colour and females measures around 15 to 20 centimetres.

A spokesman for McDonald's said: "Thankfully our rather unexpected visitor is now safe and sound back at the zoo. While this is not something our teams encounter every day, they have been thanked by the zoo for looking after the visitor."