Luigi Spina/Parco Archeologico di Pompei via AP
- A 2,000-year-old diner discovered by archaeologists in Pompeii will open to the public this summer.
- The "thermopolium" is the first of 80 others found at the site in better-than-expected condition.
- The diner used to offer its Roman customers snails and beef, traces of which were found at the site.
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A 2,000-year-old fast-food and drink counter, which was excavated by archaeologists last year in the streets of the ancient Roman city Pompeii, is opening to the public this summer.
The Telegraph reported that the opening date is set for August 12 for the "thermopolium," which is Latin for a hot-drink counter.
-Pompeii Sites (@pompeii_sites) August 6, 2021
The snack bar was discovered in the archaeological park's Regio V site last year. It had once offered its Roman customers culinary treats including pork, fish, snails, and beef, traces of which were found at the site, Insider's Sophia Ankel reported.
Duck bone fragments were also found, as well as crushed fava beans, which were used to modify the taste of wine.
Other cooking utensils, including a bronze drinking bowl, ceramic jars, and wine flasks, were also found at the site.
The counter, which is decorated with brightly colored frescos with deep circular holes that would have been used to hold jars, is the first food bar out of 80 to be found immaculately intact.
"As well as bearing witness to daily life in Pompeii, the possibilities to analyze afforded by this thermopolium are exceptional because for the first time we have excavated a site in its entirety," said Massimo Osanna, director general at the Archaeological Park of Pompeii, according to The Guardian.
Pompeii was entombed in ash and pumice when the nearby Mount Vesuvius erupted in AD79, killing between 2,000 and 15,000 people. Since its ruins were unearthed in the 16th century, archaeologists have dug up around two-thirds of the site.
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