What people ate, and where people ate, in the Roman Empire normally depended upon how rich they were.

The poor did not have kitchens and could not do any cooking. If they could afford it, they bought hot food from one of the many bars in the streets. They normally ate bread, porridge, beans, lentils and a little meat. Many poor Romans depended on handouts to survive.

Rich Romans were much more lucky. For them eating was part of a dayʼs activity. Meals would start at 3:00 pm and go on for several hours. There would be many courses and entertainment for the people to watch whilst they were eating.

During their feasts, rich Romans would eat with their fingers and slaves would then wipe their hands for them between courses! They also liked to eat lying on couches. During such feasts the guests could eat so much that they had to be sick; a special room was set aside for them called a vomitorium. They would then go back to the dining room to continue eating!

The Romans were very clever and used spices and sauces to cover up the taste of fish and meat that had gone off. One sauce was called liquamen. It was made from rotten fish, salt and herbs and took up to 3 months to make!

Normally the Romans ate the kind of food we eat today, like bread, porridge, fish and sausages. They also liked to eat dates, fruit and honey cake.

However, they did eat some more unusual food at the banquets. A favourite dish in Roman times was dormice. They were considered a delicacy and kept in cages until they were fat enough to eat!

Other dishes eaten by the Romans included; snails, jackdaws, crows, peacocks, animal brains and the lungs of sheep and goats, horses, nettles and dandelions!

At one meal, Heliogabalus served his guests with 600 hundred ostrich brains!

Read the menu on the following page to find out about more delicious treats!

The Rotten Romans

Roman daily life - Roman food

The Rotten Romans

Roman daily life - Roman food

BANQUET!

His Excellency Julius Maximus requests the pleasure of your company at his birthday banquet.

It is to be held on 23 November, AD 201 in the dining chamber of his villa on the outskirts of Rome.The feast will begin at 3:00pm and will last until everyone can eat no more!

There will be Gladiators, Jugglers, Dancing and Singing for your entertainment.

Please help our servants by providing us with your ideal Roman menu. You should include a Gustatio (starter), a Primae Mensala (main course) and a Secundae Mensala (dessert).

We look forward to seeing you there!

Sta!er

Jellyfish and eggs

Cows udders (stuffed with salted sea urchins)

Patina of brains (baked with milk and eggs)

Boiled tree fungi (with peppered fish fat sauce)

Sea urchins (with spices and honey)

Fir" C#rse

Dormice (stuffed with port an dormouse legs)

Peacocks eggs

Beans, asparagus and lettuce

Second C#rse

Sea fish with lemon

Thrushes (in honey sprinkled with poppy seeds)

Slices of roasted wild boar

Roast parrot and Flamingo

$ird C#rse

Ham boiled with figs and bay leaves

Turbot and Salmon seasoned with fish stock

Boiled Ostrich (with a sweet sauce)

Fallow deer (roasted with onion sauce and raisins)

Desse!

Fricassee of Roses (with pastry)

Stoned dates (stuffed with nuts and pine kernels)

Hot African sweet-wine cakes

This is an example of a typical menu for a banquet of a wealthy person in Roman times. Doesnʼt it sound scrumptious?!

Tasks

1. Why did the Romans only have one meal a day?

2. What did poor people eat?3. Imagine you are a rich person. Give your

choice of three dishes from the menu above. 4. Is there any food that you would not eat from

the menu above? Explain your answer.

5. You have been invited to the banquet of Julius Maximus! See the invitation above! Design a menu to send to the servants of Julius Maximus showing all your favourite Roman foods. Remember it is a great honour to have been invited to this party, so make sure your menu looks good!