What Did the Romans Eat? Part 1: Posh Food

What Did the Romans Eat? Part 1: Posh Food

From Instant Classics by Vespucci

March 5, 2026 · 55 min

About this episode

Mary and Charlotte explore the extravagant foods of the Roman elite, debunking myths and discussing historical anecdotes.

When we think about Roman food, most of us imagine wealthy citizens stuffing their faces with rare delicacies while reclining on their sides and taking occasional breaks to use the vomitorium (urban myth alert). In this two-part special, Mary and Charlotte cut through the fermented fish sauce to look at what the Romans really ate. And no, the vomitorium was not a place where they made themselves vomit. In this first episode, Mary and Charlotte look at posh food, beginning right at the top - in the imperial palace. Happily, there are some stories of jaw-dropping extravagance, including Elagabalus (a fave of the show) hiding pearls in the rice as a surprise for his guests. And the favourite dish of the Emperor Vitellius involved pike liver, peacock brain, flamingo tongue and lamprey sperm - all mixed together. But just as many emperors favoured a martial diet and household economy. Augustus - a snack guy - boasted about his ascetic preference for with cheese, figs and bread. Tiberius was criticised by the elite for serving leftovers. You can never trust anecdotes about the emperors, but most of the stories have a plausibility when you read them alongside a surviving cookbook…

People in this episode

Hosts: Mary, Charlotte

Topics covered

  • Roman food
  • posh food
  • imperial palace
  • extravagance
  • ancient diets

Keywords

  • Roman food
  • Elagabalus
  • Vitellius
  • Apicius
  • garum
  • ancient Rome
  • extravagance

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Apicius’ De re culinaria

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