In ancient Roman times, hosting lavish, hours-long banquets was a display of wealth and status in Roman society. “Eating was the supreme act of civilization and a celebration of life,” said Alberto Uri, professor of ancient philosophy at the University of Ferrara in Italy.

The Roses of Heliogabalus, 1888, by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, depicts the                                           atmosphere of a Roman banquet.

The ancient Romans enjoyed eating a wide variety of foods, prepared with ingredients that were used to make both sweet and savoury dishes. For example, the short rustic lagann pasta that was usually served with hummus was also used to make honey cake with fresh ricotta cheese.

As for the spices, they were prepared by leaving fish meat, blood and intestines to ferment in containers, under the Mediterranean sun.

Game meats such as venison, wild boar and rabbit, along with seafood such as raw oysters and lobster, were some of the expensive foods that regularly appeared at ancient Roman banquets.

Relief depicting a banquet at the home of the ancient Roman general, Lucius                                               Lucullus, from around 80 BC.

In ancient times, Romans competed with each other to host banquets featuring unique dishes, such as parrot tongue stew or a rodent dish.

Giorgio Franchetti, a food historian and researcher of ancient Roman history, has recovered the lost recipes for these meals, which he shares in his book, Dining with the Ancient Romans, with researcher and chef Cristina Conti.

Together, the duo curates dining experiences at archaeological sites in Italy that give guests a glimpse into what it was like to eat like a Roman noble.

The behavior of binge eating for long hours led to what would now be considered undesirable social behavior.

“They had strange habits that didn’t fit with modern table manners, like eating while lying down and vomiting between meals,” Franchetti explained. Because feasts were a status symbol and lasted late into the night, vomiting was a common practice required to make room for more food. The ancient Romans were hedonists and sought out the pleasures of life, according to Gori, who has written several books on Rome’s culinary culture.

                 2nd century AD mosaic depicting a dirty floor after a banquet


With all that food, the Romans avoided bloating by eating while reclining on a comfortable, padded couch. This horizontal position was believed to aid digestion and was a sign of elite status.

Banquet guests were sometimes allowed to lie down and take a quick nap between meals, giving their stomachs a break from the food.

Lying down while eating was a privilege reserved for men only, while women either ate at another table, or sat in a kneeling position or next to their husbands, while he enjoyed his meals.

The Romans were also superstitious. Franchetti notes that if an object fell from a table, it belonged to the afterlife and could not be returned for fear that the dead would come seeking revenge, while sprinkling salt was considered an ill omen. If a rooster crowed at an unusual hour, servants would be sent to fetch it, slaughter it, and immediately serve it on the table.

Feasts in ancient Roman times were a way to keep death at bay, Franchetti said.

In keeping with this worldview, tableware was shaped like skulls. According to Gori, it was customary to invite dead loved ones to a banquet, and to offer them plates full of food. Statues representing the dead shared the table with the living.