ROME’S CIRCUS MAXIMUS, ONCE THE largest stadium in history, is now a massive green space: nondescript enough for dogs to defecate on, yet far too important to bulldoze. The city is stuffed with such examples of well-preserved but long-disused monuments that Romans have proudly built to uphold their culture and civilization as the world’s apex.

Of late, however, a growing community of Italians are turning to a more vivid way of honoring the past. Both restaurants and a museum are embracing new, experiential forms of food archeology to demonstrate how food has always been one of the glories of Rome.