Il pellegrinaggio a Roma, noto come Giubileo, ha rappresentato per secoli un momento di profonda spiritualità e devozione. Nel Medioevo erano chiamate vie romee le strade che i pellegrini percorrevano verso Roma. Fin dall’epoca longobarda l’itinerario romeo principale per i pellegrini provenienti dall’Europa Settentrionale e da Occidente è la via Francigena,
Dietro il cammino verso la Città Eterna si celava anche una dimensione quotidiana e concreta: quella del cibo. I pellegrini, o “romei”, affrontavano lunghe e faticose peregrinazioni, e l’alimentazione divenne un elemento fondamentale del loro viaggio e riflesso delle le condizioni sociali, economiche e religiose.
The pilgrimage to Rome, known as the Jubilee, represented, for centuries, a moment of deep spirituality and devotion. In the Middle Ages, the routes pilgrims walked to get to Rome were called Romee. Since the Langobardic period, the Via Francigena was the principal route for pilgrims coming from Northern and Western Europe.
Behind the walk towards the Eternal City hid an everyday and genuine aspect: food. Pilgrims, or the Romei, bore long and tiring pilgrimages, and food became the principal element of their trip and a mirror of their social, economic and religious conditions.
In the centuries, the walk to Rome has been an act of profound devotion and, at the same time, a physical enterprise that toiled body and soul. In this context, food has always played a crucial role, transcending its mere sustenance functions and becoming a symbol of charity, hospitality and sharing. Food management became a complex logistical operation and a tangible expression of faith. With the announcement of the first Jubilee, the number of pilgrims rose notably (as recounted by Dante Alighieri), pushing religious and civil institutions to handle their food offerings. Confraternities and monasteries became hospitality locations where pilgrims received hot, nourishing meals. Jubilees, with the massive flow of faithful, operated as a catalyst for the development of a culinary infrastructure and cultural exchange. Confraternities, monasteries, and churches outlined impressive logistics for those times, managing the distribution of meals in squares, courtyards of the churches and even the main streets. This grand march responded to a primary need but transformed Rome into a gastronomic melting pot. Pilgrims from all over the world brought their traditions, and more exotic recipes flanked the Italian traditional meals, representing the universal and unifying nature of the Jubilee.  The great demand for food stimulated innovation in distribution methods and favoured an early form of culinary globalisation.
The pilgrims’ food experience was twofold, uniting the practical need for nourishment with a profound spiritual dimension. The extended and tiring journey required foods that gave energy and resistance, but every bite carried religious connotations. The simple act of sharing bread and wine was not only an expression of hospitality but also a rite that united the material dimension to the spiritual one, recalling the centrality of the Eucharist in the route of the pilgrim. The pilgrim’s diet, even if adapted to the available resources and local traditions, was founded on common food pillars of the social classes of the Middle Ages and Renaissance.

Food had to be easily preservable and nourishing. Preserving requirements and food choices were strictly entwined. Bread, often black bread, was the main food. Its preparation varied: they used wheat flour, rye, barley, spelt, and even chestnuts. Known as the bread of penance, it symbolised humility and sacrifice. Soups with legumes, cereals and seasonal vegetables were quite common. An emblematic example is legume soup, a symbol of humility and fraternity, or the Pulmentum, a type of vegetable soup with cereals and legumes, often enriched with lard, typical among pilgrims hosted in private homes. They used a variety of herbs to season and for their therapeutic properties, and were part of the pilgrim’s sack. Meat consumption was generally limited, often substituted by eggs, which compensated for the lack of protein. Another documented food the pilgrims along the Via Francigena ate was boiled fish. Religious institutions offered abundant meals, meat, bread and wine. A symbol of the Jubilee that has crossed the centuries was cheese, particularly pecorino cheese, appreciated for its longevity and high nutritional value. During a pilgrimage, they carried pecorino cheese in shoulder bags as a food supply and ate it along the way. They preferred wine, not always of high quality, to water, which was considered potentially dangerous. Medieval wine often had a low alcohol content and was sweetened with spices or honey to hide its sour taste due to difficulties in preserving and transporting it. For all pilgrims, wine carried spiritual significance as a symbol of Christ and a warm welcome. Along the routes, the pilgrims’ menu included wine. Beer was widespread in Northern Europe.
Socio-economic stratification was reflected clearly in the access and quality of the diet. Such a pervasive distinction indicated that, although pilgrims could receive charitable sustenance, their pre-pilgrimage social status meaningfully influenced their typical diet. Probably plain yet nourishing meals offered by religious institutions reflected the everyday diet, less a luxury sustenance. Monasteries had a crucial and multifunctional role. They were the cornerstone of food culture and pilgrimage food at that time.

The pilgrim’s table in Rome, beyond hospitality.

Religious institutions played a central role in managing pilgrim hospitality in Rome. Confraternities, monasteries, and churches mobilised to feed the thousands of faithful, serving as vital places of refreshment and refuge. They consistently offered simple but highly nutritious meals. During Renaissance Jubilees, confraternities demonstrated remarkable logistical skills for the time, efficiently distributing meals in public spaces such as squares, church courtyards, and even along major thoroughfares. This tradition of community provisioning endures into the modern era, with pilgrim reception centres continuing to distribute meals, often free or at nominal prices, that hark back to traditional Jubilee recipes, such as legume soups, fresh bread, and fruit. Alongside charitable provisions, pilgrims, especially the wealthy ones, could supplement their diets by purchasing fresh produce at local markets. It suggests a dual economy of pilgrim sustenance, where people donated some provisions while others purchased, allowing for variation in diet choice and quality based on individual economic status.
Pilgrim food was simple, making the best of nutritional value and intelligent use of available resources. Soups and broths were, as usual, the heart of the traveller’s diet. They were economical, easy to prepare in large quantities, and highly nutritious, ideal for feeding large groups of travellers. Cucina povera’s originality and resolution were key culinary drivers. Pilgrim food, often born of necessity, charity, and limited resources, was inherently ingenious. It maximised highly available, cheap, and leftover usage, transforming them into robust, nutritionally adequate meals. This cucina povera was not just a diet of deprivation but a testament to practical culinary innovation.
Territorial culinary identity was prominent along the pilgrim’s route. The gastronomic experience of a pilgrim was not limited to Roman offerings. It was shaped significantly by the diverse regional foods encountered along the various pilgrimage routes leading to Rome (e.g., the Via Francigena). These regional specialities, often of ancient origins and unique methods of preparation, became an integral part of the larger pilgrim’s diet, providing a diverse gastronomic landscape. Through the centuries, the basic pilgrim diet remained firmly anchored in practical, simple, and often regional foods. It included items such as soups, various breads, and legumes. The basic needs of a traveller, especially one of limited means, ensured a remarkable continuity of simpler, more robust, and locally sourced foods. The practical limitations of travel and charity often trumped the trends of haute cuisine. The culinary journey of Roman pilgrims is not just a chapter in history but a living tradition that continues to influence contemporary gastronomy. Even modern pilgrim reception centres in Rome actively perpetuate the tradition of serving meals that directly reflect traditional Jubilee recipes, demonstrating a conscious preservation of historic culinary practices. It reinforces the enduring ethos of simple, nutritious, and accessible food for travellers.
The food travel of Roman pilgrims is a fascinating insight into history. It reveals a diet characterised by simplicity, nutritional adequacy in the historical context, heavy reliance on charitable provisions, and fascinating regional variations encountered along the routes leading to Rome. Far from being a mere act of nourishment, food for pilgrims held profound symbolic meaning, embodying the charity, hospitality, spiritual connection, and cultural exchange that defined their journey.
These historical culinary experiences have left an enduring legacy in modern Italian cuisine. The oldest traditions continue to shape contemporary dishes and regional specialities, and interest in ancient food routes and their rediscovery is growing. The history of pilgrims’ food in Rome is not simply a recount of what they ate but a window on the past, offering insight into human resilience, the power of faith and the universal and timeless human need for nourishment, strictly bound to cultural identity.

The Jubilee is a religious celebration that, every time, attracts millions of pilgrims to Rome who desire to live a unique experience of faith. Apart from liturgical celebrations and visits to sacred places, food plays a crucial role in the experience of a pilgrim. Over the centuries, jubilees acquired more relevance in the religious and cultural scene. During the jubilees, pilgrims shared meals in taverns, monasteries and convents. Food was not only nourishment but an occasion for sharing and community. Pilgrims from distant places brought unique food traditions, creating a rich culinary mosaic. During the Jubilee, some traditional recipes became symbols of the Roman gastronomic culture.
The food the pilgrims consumed was not physical nourishment but a spiritual and symbolic experience. Sharing a meal was a way to reinforce community bonds and feel part of a collective experience of faith. The table became a place where people met, reflected and prayed.
During a jubilee, taverns and inns became places of hospitality where pilgrims shared stories of their travels, expressed gratitude and renewed their faith. That cultural and religious exchange was reflected in the meals offered, which recalled local ingredients and traditional preparation methods.
The jubilee pilgrim’s food represents a fascinating plot of tradition, spirituality and culture. Through food, pilgrims satisfied hunger, desire to connect and a sense of community. Whether it was a simple soup with legumes or pasta, each morsel brought travel, cultural and faith stories. In a changing world, culinary tradition remains a constant, unifying generations of pilgrims in a unique and profound experience.

Apart from nourishment, food during the Jubilee conveyed a spiritual and community meaning. Canteens organised in confraternities and monasteries fed pilgrims, and represented an act of charity and hospitality. The sharing of a meal became a moment of fraternity where social differences were put aside in the name of their common faith.
Food was not just a means to sustain the body during the long walk to Rome but also a vehicle for spiritual and social values.
During the Jubilee, food became a ritual. Some plates were prepared for special occasions as a symbol of purification and gratitude. Only during the 20th century did the Jubilee acquire a global dimension, attracting people all over the world. The cuisine of jubilee pilgrims became a cultural meeting point where dishes of diverse culinary traditions merged to form a unique gastronomic experience.
Today, Jubilee pilgrims’ food is not just a symbol of Roman culinary traditions, but also an opportunity to encounter with different cultures. Sharing food represents a moment of unity, a celebration of faith and culture. The Jubilee continues to evolve, but the importance of food remains fundamental in the spiritual and cultural experience of every pilgrim.