Abstract: Jewish-Roman cuisine, the traditional food of one of Europe’s longest-standing Jewish communities, is among Italy’s most distinctive hyper-local repertoires. Gastronomes increasingly acknowledge the importance of Jewish foodways for Italian cuisine, but a few famous “signature dishes” often dominate popular ideas of Jewish food in Italy. In Rome, carciofi alla giudìa – deep-fried “Jewish-style” artichokes – have long been used to symbolize the diverse and complex Jewish-Roman tradition. Blending ethnographic methods with discourse analysis, I ask how and why carciofi alla giudìa occupy this role, and what this means for contemporary Jewish-Roman identity. I then examine a selection of “origin stories” behind other dishes in the Jewish-Roman tradition, arguing that going beyond the near-ubiquitous artichoke can complicate and enrich our understanding of Jewish-Roman history, culture, and identity. Rather than attempting to prove or disprove these stories, I analyze them as tools for self-fashioning. I identify a variety of characteristics that these narratives are used to communicate: including ancient roots; resilience and resourcefulness; and an openness to new arrivals and external influences. Finally, I interrogate the relationship between the Jewish-Roman tradition and the city’s cuisine at large, arguing that this too has important repercussions for Roman and Jewish-Roman self-perception and identity.
Abstract: In the twenty-first century, Rome’s former Jewish Ghetto has experienced rapid “foodification,” in which food businesses come to dominate a previously residential or mixed-use neighborhood. Why and how has foodification taken place in Rome’s former Ghetto, and how unique is this case? What can this example teach us about foodification as a phenomenon? Foodification is influenced by broader forces, including gentrification, but is also affected by factors particular to this neighborhood. These include Jewish heritage tourism; religious dietary laws; and a growing curiosity about hyper-local food, such as cucina ebraico-romanesca (Jewish-Roman cuisine), and about dishes outside the Italian canon. Jewish-style and kosher restaurants have developed to stimulate and satisfy multiple demands, serving “traditional” Jewish-Roman dishes; Middle-Eastern and North African dishes; new interpretations of popular Italian dishes; and kosher versions of international foods popular in Italy, like hamburgers and sushi rolls. Contrary to the idea that this diversity threatens the Jewish-Roman tradition, I argue that the neighborhood’s foodscape reflects the variety of communities and tastes in contemporary Rome, where local specialties persist alongside a wide range of other options. This article argues that although foodification is often connected to gentrification and tourism, it should be distinguished from these phenomena. By asking how the former Ghetto’s new restaurants communicate heritage and identity, I demonstrate that foodification can take place in ways that are specific to a particular neighborhood, and that the food has become one of the major means by which the former Ghetto’s past and present character is articulated in Rome.
