BACH 6/2024 - A Roman Feast

We are pleased to announce another Bay Area Culinary Historians potluck dinner. Please join us Sunday, June 23, 2024, for an evening of early Roman cookery, presented by BACH member Shannon Wells.

Over two thousand years ago, ancient Roman writers on food were having some of the same debates as today. There were snooty foodies who wanted the most exotic ingredients and fanciest preparations for their meal, versus the snooty pastoralists who idealized the simplicity of country life and its food, criticizing the excesses and poor taste of the nove divites (that's nouveau riche for you plebians). This meal will focus mostly on the latter types of dishes. We'll be creating our own interpretations of dishes described by Cato the Elder, Apicius, Pliny the Elder, and others, with help from modern historians.

The dinner will take place at a private home in Oakland, CA. The exact location will be provided to registered attendees. We invite attendees to come at 6:00 p.m., with the meal beginning at 6:30 p.m. If you need to complete your preparations on site, you are welcome to arrive early, but let us know ahead of time and tell us what you might need to finish your dish so that we can coordinate appropriately.

Attendees will be directed to a listing of helpful resources for Roman recipes and techniques, as well as a spreadsheet for you to choose which dish(es) you intend to bring. We ask that each attendee bring at least one item.

Shannon Wells will host an optional, short Zoom meeting prior to the event to discuss primary and secondary sources as well as to facilitate sharing tips on ingredient sourcing and preparation.

Shannon Wells is an amateur culinary historian with a long time interest in the history of daily life, including costume history and early Western music. She has previously hosted several historical dinner events.

Tickets (free) are required for this event. Please note that we expect the potluck to fill up, however, there will be a waiting list. In the past we have been able to accommodate people from the waiting list, so, if it is sold out before you are able to register, please do sign up anyway.

As always, it is super-helpful if you indicate your interest on the BACH Events page on Facebook *in addition to registering here onEventbrite*