What's on the Menu in Ancient Greece?

Akratisma is the Ancient Greek word for breakfast. Today, many nutritionists consider breakfast to be the most important meal of the day. However, breakfast in Ancient Greece was not regarded as an essential meal for most people. It would usually consist of staples such as bread with wine, porridge, or a type of pancake with honey. Breakfast was a light meal that was typically eaten by the working class, including slaves, servants, warriors, or laborers, who needed nourishment to sustain their activities throughout the day.

Wealthier citizens missed breakfast. They would often sleep through the mornings after having feasted and partied late into the night before. Lunch was another light meal for the Greeks. Lunch fare often included fish, cheese, legumes, fruits, and bread.

Dinner in Ancient Greece was an important social event and party for the upperclassmen. It was eaten at sunset. The ancient Greeks laid on their sides and ate their dinner on chaise lounges. This was done in order to aid digestion. For the main course, the centerpiece of a Greek meal might be meat or game–either from farmed animals or hunting. They consumed boars and pigs, lambs and goats, and chickens. Animals were often sacrificed to the gods, especially deer, and then their meat would either be eaten as part of the religious service, or left for whatever god the sacrifice had been performed for. The Greeks loved fish—as an island nation in the Mediterranean, fresh fish was a staple of their diets. Dinners also included legumes, olives, cheeses, breads, figs, and any vegetables they could grow.

Sacrifice of a pig in ancient Greece, Epidromos Painter, 510–500 B.C.

Wine was always served during dinner parties. Sometimes the Greeks would play drinking games such as Kottabos— the oldest recorded drinking game. Kottabos was described as a combination of horseshoes and chugging contests.The Greeks drank wine from a large serving bowl known as a kylix. Wine in Ancient Greece was a more fermented and watered down version of modern wine and it was imbibed throughout the day.

A man playing kottabos, about 500 B.C. Creative Commons, Marie-Lan Nguyen (2011)

The Greek family did not eat meals together. Instead, men and women ate separately. Men would often invite their fellow male friends over for the dinner festivities. They would eat, drink, talk, and play drinking games for hours on end. The women were not allowed to join the men, unless they were a slave or a prostitute.

It's interesting to note that vegetarianism existed in Ancient Greece. The most famous vegetarian of all was a man named Pythagoras, whose theory you've probably heard of!

Bust of Pythagoras of Samos in the Capitoline Museums, Rome

The Ancient Greeks also ate some strange foods that may seem unappetizing to us today such as eels, small birds, and locusts. One of their most peculiar dishes was referred to as "black soup." Black soup was made from pig's blood, vinegar and salt. Yum!

Ancient Greeks usually used their hands to eat their food. They rarely used spoons, but would use bread to soak up broths. However, they had knives, which they used to cut their meat.

The Ancient Greeks grew olives, grapes, figs and wheat and kept goats, which were used to produce milk and cheese. It is estimated that while only 20% of the land in Ancient Greece was used for farming, the majority of their diets came from the crops they grew! Most of the soil in Greece was full of rocks and pebbles, rendering it useless for agriculture.

In the month of October, the crops that were grown would be planted and then in May the Greeks would harvest the grain. Farms in Ancient Greece were small and generally only had about five acres of land. The main crop in Ancient Greece was barley which could be used for making various foods that were crucial for the Greeks, such as flour (for bread), porridge, and even wine.

One fun fact that I found particularly interesting while researching the cuisine of Ancient Greece is that modern Greeks throw flowers to celebrate instead of smashing their dishes on the ground. The symbolism of smashing plates is said to have originated in Ancient Greece. Smashing plates has been used to signify an end or a beginning and the practice was used to drive off evil spirits.