Do not ever think that brunch, a combination of breakfast and lunch, only rose to popularity at this contemporary time where a lot of people are just too conscious of what they are eating. Actually, it does not really apply to all because there are also some that just munch on what they love in order to satisfy their gastronomic cravings. Anyhow, it all begun in the primitive period where ancient Rome food consisted of bread, salad, olives, cheese, fruits, nuts and meat that were all served at about 11 o’ clock in the morning. After eating, it was followed by a rest.
During dinner, ancient Rome food mostly involved vegetables. It was basically very simple as compared to the ones on a broad daylight. Prepared by the mother or if the family is affluent, the meal will be arranged by the female servants under the mother’s direction. They will dine in the atrium where table and stools are set up then the rest of the family members come together when everything is all ready. When it comes to the utensils, knives and forks were considered to be very cryptic, they would be using spoons. The meals were cut into small slices so they can be easily picked by hands. However, in the last two centuries of the Republic where there were already councils in the senate, the style has changed a bit. When it came to industrialization, there were further developments such as a separate area where everybody feasted. Then instead of the benches, there were now couches.
In the Imperial Age, the lowest class in the society called plebians, they were surviving on porridge that was made out of vegetables. If they had some extra money on their budget, then they would eat fish, bread, olive, wine and meat. The plebians were helped by the government with a somewhat welfare program called the "annona." There was also a separate one for the kids called "alimenta" that started in the early 2C AD. It was done by giving each, stamps which were little tokens called "tesserae." They brought with them containers to hold the wheat or flour given to them. On special events, meat was also distributed.
On the other hand, the ancient Rome food for the patricians was way elaborate. Parties were held for men while women and children also had their own. Wine was never missed out and they spent long hours socializing with one another. It was total entertainment for them where some played the musical instruments while others danced.
