Emmanuel Macron's King Charles III banquet cost the French president €450,000

King Charles III's lobster dinner cost the French presidency €475,000 (£400,000), according to the country's auditor's office.

President Emmanuel Macron has pulled out all the stops for the king's visit in September – and guests were treated to green lobster, crab and a variety of cheeses.

But in its annual report on the president's accounts, the Cour des Comptes warned that high spending on government spending had contributed to leaving its budget €8.3m in the red.

And it says that the Elysée now needs to make “significant efforts … to restore and maintain the financial balance of the financial balance of the presidency”.

Of the money spent on the dinner, more than €165,000 was for food, and another €40,000 for drinks.

Guests at the star-studded banquet – which included actor Hugh Grant, football manager Arsene Wenger and Rolling Stone Mick Jagger – were treated to a menu of blue lobster and crab followed by Bresse poultry and mushroom gratin.

There were also cheeses – including French Comté and British blue Stichelton.

And for dessert they were served a rose macaroon cookie, made of rose petal cream, raspberries and lychees.

The lavish banquet at the Palace of Versailles was part of King Charles' three-day state visit to France, aimed at strengthening the important alliance between the two countries.

It was originally scheduled for March, but was postponed after widespread protests over pension reform hit major cities.

The King's visit is not the only one cited in the report, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's July 2023 Louvre banquet – which cost the presidency €412,000 – also.

Due to higher spending, including these government adoption programs, spending increased by 14% last year, the audit office said.

That compares to a profit of only 6.5% of the income received by the presidency.