ROME, June 25 — There is a struggle under way, taking place in plain view, for the soul of Rome’s historic center: in one corner sit the forces of restraint, etiquette and cultural preservation, in the other the unswerving desire for just one more round of drinks.

A leisurely midnight stroll through Campo dei Fiori, Piazza Navona or the medieval neighborhood of Trastevere puts the issue in clear relief. It is “ladies night” at Sloppy Sam’s, a popular pub on Campo dei Fiori just in front of the commemorative statue of the philosopher Giordano Bruno, who was condemned to death by the Catholic Church for heresy in 1600; shirtless male bartenders are serving up round after round of discounted shots.

Around the corner, a stone’s throw from where Julius Caesar met his treacherous end, the Zeta Lounge is offering about two hours of open bar, all you can drink for one low price. Later, around 3 a.m., an American tourist is barking through a megaphone asking a woman he is with to pull up her skirt and expose herself, eliciting laughs from his friends and, surprisingly enough, the woman herself.

The place is soaked in booze, and a growing number of Rome’s residents are fed up with what they see.