In Qajar Persia, people do not eat at a table but around the sofreh, a long cloth spread on the floor or carpet. Dishes are placed all together, without a starter-main-dessert order: rice, bread, cheese, fresh herbs, jams, and tea coexist. Each person serves themselves as they wish, and sharing bread always opens the meal. In the frugality of exile, this sofreh often shrinks to little: bread, white cheese, and a glass of tea.

Two signatures of Persian cuisine that Bahá'u'lláh knew: saffron (za'farán), red gold that gilds festive rice, and rose water (goláb) distilled from the roses of Kashan, which perfumes sweets and drinks. Even modest, the Persian table knows how to be delicate.