The French Art of Sharing a Simple Meal

Years ago, while living in France, I became friends with an elegant older lady who lived in the village overlooking the city of Lyon. I'd visit most often in the afternoons. A winding walk down from the train station led to her garden wall, where a large door painted lavender blue kept her house apart from the eyes of passersby.

She'd hear my knock and come to the gate from her gardening (digging up bulbs or pruning her roses), in a casual white blouse and string of amber pearls. She'd wave me in with twinkling eyes and a joyful "Entrez, entrez, s'il vous plaît!"

Visits were usually accompanied by some kind of simple snack, as visits with French often are, but one afternoon, after a couple hours of garden work with friends from the village (largely scraping moss off her patio), she said, "Come come, it's time to eat. We'll have lunch a la bonne franquette!" 

And with that, she hurried into her house, returned with a tablecloth and linens and a charge that I set the table, then brought out a menagerie of foods: wildberry syrup and a pitcher of water, three small rounds of chèvre from the weekend's market, a baguette and jams, fresh apricots from her neighbor's tree, a bowl of dark cherries, and a small chocolate cake she had ordered from the pâtissier in anticipation of our visit. Someone plucked a couple of buds from her flowering bushes and put them in a small vase amidst all the food.

We sat in speckled sunlight beneath her chestnut tree, her unfussy spread of food sharing the table with us like it was itself a guest. For hours, we talked and ate and laughed. The simple linens, the rustic food, the garden growing wild and unruly around us... All created an air of ease and comfort and welcomeness. Here was a time and place for letting down one's hair and connecting.

That phrase, manger à la bonne franquette, comes to mind now anytime I invite friends to eat at my house. Literally, it translates to "eating in good frankness." More colloquially, it means a simple meal without fuss.

When we think of French dining, we often think first of Michelin stars and ornate platings of rare delicacies. But in the everyday lives of the French, enjoying food and company is anything but that. It's about sharing a meal with family, close friends, new acquaintances, and neighbors. It's about simple foods, delicious foods, comfortable foods. It's about an easy atmosphere of warmth and gaiety. 

To dine à la bonne franquette is to be welcomed in as you are, with what you already have. It is rooted in being genuine, rather than trying to impress. It's sharing your own with the people around you. 

One of the reasons we love this approach to hosting is because of how freeing it is. In a time when we're flanked on every side by perfect Pinterest spreads and influencer reels, manger à la bonne franquette is a revolution. It’s a reminder that things don’t have to be perfect to be meaningful. Whether you gather around a mismatched table or lay out a humble spread on a picnic blanket on the grass, the true feast is in connecting with each other.

A loaf of bread. Some fresh fruit. Good company. That’s all it takes. You already have everything you need.

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