Not techically Hellenic, but one of those, "If they had them back then, odds are high they had them earlier" posts. A fascinating discovery of a spectacular street food shop was made by archaeologists in Pompeii, southern Italy, a find with provides a peek into ancient food culture.

Experts unearthed an entire food shop that sold ready-to-eat meals to passersby, in what appears to be a proper street food shop, equivalent to our modern-day fast food. The archaeologists found counters containing circular holes, where terracotta jars with food had been stored by the shop owner.

Additionally, these counters feature fantastically well-preserved frescoes depicting different animals, probably about the kind of meat that was sold in this shop. Following further analysis, archaeologists found traces of beef, pork, fish, and snails, revealing the variety of dishes the residents of this Greco-Roman city were enjoying.

This find, which was made during excavations in winter of 2020, provides incredible insight into the daily lives and diets of ancient people. The information discovered during the dig is crucial to developing our understanding of life in antiquity.

Pompeii was an ancient city located near Naples (Napoli) in the Campania region of southern Italy. The city of more than 13,000 residents, along with Herculaneum and many villas in the surrounding area was buried under volcanic ash and pumice in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, leaving mankind with a spectacularly vivid archaeological site. Pompeii, located in Campania, southern Italy, is an open-air museum where visitors can easily view the shockingly vivid remnants of the complete devastation of the city after the violent volcanic eruption. Nearby Mt. Vesuvius is still an active volcano, although it is currently dormant.