Could you tell me about some ancient Greek foods?

Dr. dig responds:
The staple foods of the ancient Greek diet were olives, bread and wine. They didn't have foods that came from the Americas - tomatoes, corn or potatoes - because America hadn't been discovered by the Europeans yet.

Wine is made from grapes, so your restaurant will want to serve a substitute, such as grape juice.

Crusty breadrolls, goat cheese and olives would have been the mainstay at most meals. Greece is surrounded by water, so the ancient Greeks had a variety of fish to eat, such as mackerel and tuna. They also ate octopus, squid, and shellfish, which plays a large part in Greek cooking today. Fish would have been flavored with bay leaves, rosemary and thyme. Other meat was only ever eaten on sacrificial occasions such as religious festivals.

For vegetables, the ancient Greeks ate onions, peas, lentils, cabbage and greens.

The ancient Greeks did not have sugar,so they satisfied their sweet tooth with fresh fruit, such as figs, dates and pomegranites and apples. They had no oranges or lemons. As a treat they might make small cakes sweetened with honey.

The ancient Greeks would have paid for their meals using small bronze coins called drachmae.

Bon appetit!

What would the Greeks have eaten as lavish foods when a guest came for dinner?
   Douglas, 13, Sydney, Australia

Dr. dig responds:
The basic Greek diet was a healthy one of bread, goat cheese, olives and figs, dried fish, eggs, honey, and diluted wine. A feast would involve a greater variety of the same sorts of food, plus meat - usually sheep and or goat but occasionally cattle or pig - which was reserved for very special occasions.