The Olympics might be held in Paris this year, but Bacchanalia is one London restaurant paying homage to the international games’ roots. Serving Greco-Roman cuisine in lavish surroundings, among antiquities dating back to 2AD, and more modern Damien Hirst sculptures, the Mount Street restaurant is bursting with the spirit of the Games, while transporting guests back to where it all began: Greece.

The Olympics takes its name from the Panhellenic religious sanctuary of Olympia, found in the Peloponnese peninsula, and dates back to 776 BC. The modern games, as we know them today, were first hosted in the capital city of Athens in 1896 and have been held every four years since then, respecting the ancient four-year time interval otherwise known as an ‘Olympiad’ (they didn’t use years back then).

Image: Johnny Stephens Photography

To celebrate the arrival of the world-renowned sporting event currently underway across the channel, Bacchanalia has launched its new Olympia menu, inspired by the ancient wonders of Hera, Queen of the Gods. Dishes, by culinary director Athinagoras Kostakos, include oven-baked feta, cherry tomatoes and Kalamata olives, and lamb chops with paprika sauce. Elsewhere, an Ancient Greek God cocktail menu has been created by Head of Bars, Tiago Mira, to include serves named after Demeter, Ancient Greek goddess of the harvest, god of love, Eros, and Greek goddess of sight, Theia. It’s the former we’re celebrating for our latest Cocktail of the Week, so you can toast the Olympics in style.

Discarded Banana Peel Rum

£32.50

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Don Julio 1942 tequila

£200

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Visit bacchanalia.co.uk

Read more: Raspberry negroni cocktail recipe by Le Meurice