At the Merovingian court, the meal blends the heritage of the Gallo-Roman banquet (convivium) with Germanic customs. It begins with simple dishes—spelt porridge, bread, cheeses, eggs—before the great roast (game and pork) served on large bread trenchers, drenched in Gallic wine and mead. Honey and preserved fruits close the feasts. Outside of festivals, the daily table is reduced to bread, porridge, and dried vegetables; after her widowhood, Clotilde eats like a cloistered nun, frugally.

Before cane and beet, honey is the only true sugar in the Frankish kingdom: it glazes meats, preserves fruits, and fermented with water it yields mead, the drink of honor at weddings and oaths. It is the sweet thread that links Clotilde’s table, from her betrothal to her days of penance.