Dining out in ancient Rome was probably a risky affair compared to today, even if the basis of comparison is modern fast food restaurants. Public health standards were, shall we say, loose, and G.I. pathogens were introduced via fecal-oral and other routes.
“…those of the less favoured social class lived in tenement block housing with numerous families (insulae)…The insulae accommodated high population densities due to the advantageous use of the housing as a consequence of the reduced interior spaces and a greater number of divisions [82,83,84,85]. They were the cheapest, but the indigents and those who could not afford accommodation when nightfall came—the wages were paid daily—had to resort to other means. Large shanty and slum areas (tuguria) were an option [85,86]…Thus, in ancient Roman cities, areas were generated where people lived together in suffocating proximity while garbage, faeces, urine and stagnant water accumulated, along with their associated microfauna (e.g., helminths, protozoa, flies, mosquitoes, fleas, bedbugs, lice and other insects) and their natural hosts (people, domestic animals, rodents, birds).”
Mmm, which of the local thermopolia shall we explore this evening?
Maybe the basic diet of ancient Romans had healthy aspects compared to food eaten by some of us currently, but food preparation standards in ancient times were rather…primitive.