I love Italian food (well, I am Italian). I love history. I loved visiting Rome. Put that all together and you get Dinner in Rome – A history of the world in one meal by Andreas Vestad. This book was originally published in Vestad’s native language, Norwegian, but I am glad somebody thought it worthy of releasing in English in the US.
The premise is very simple. Vestad sits down to a meal at his favorite restaurant in Rome. As he eats, he explores the history of the food he is eating. Starting with bread and ending with lemon (for his sorbetto dessert). Each chapter centers around one food and he picked good ones: oil, pasta, pepper, salt, etc.
Vestad has a long history in food, having been a food critic, a chef, and cookbook author. In this book, he debunks historic food myths (pepper costing more than gold), explores how food built and later toppled the Roman Empire (tied closely with the growing of grain), and gives us tons of cool food tidbits. The last were some of my favorite parts of the book. I am sure that I will be a big hit at my next social gathering when I explain to people how the Mafia is related to lemons and that Marco Polo did not bring pasta to Italy.
The book is slim and a quick read. For those who love Italy, food, and history I suggest you give this a read. I read this as a passport book from around the world, Norwegian author takes place in Italy.