It's an upstairs-downstairs situation in London, where two new restaurants under the same owner are bringing the sun-soaked shores of the Greek isles and its coastal regions to a newly designed space featuring a crudo bar and an open plan live fire kitchen.

Find the subtle little sign off Bedale Street and head upstairs to this lively, fun restaurant serving thrilling food. This is the spot that the capital’s Hellenic food enthusiasts have been crying out for. And it already has a Michelin star.

Up a flight of off-white stone stairs, OMA greets you with sunlight and the scent of woodsmoke.

The dining room is flooded with natural light from towering, custom-crafted windows — on one side, a terrace overlooking the bustle of Borough Market; on the other, a view into the open kitchen where the heart of OMA glows: a central hearth.

Facing the entrance, a 2.5-metre raw bar showcases dayboat fish and shellfish, inviting guests to perch and watch the kitchen team prepare raw and cured crudo, ceviche and tartare. But OMA, named after the Greek word for “raw,” is anything but one-note.

“I love it because it’s not,” says Australian chef George Calombaris, who gave Culinary Wonderland the heads up about the restaurant after he visited last year.

“OMA in Greek means raw — but it’s got a little Middle Eastern, as well as Greek, in its spine. It’s modern but yummy. The cocktails are amazing. It’s super cool," he says.

Beyond the bar, skewers of Cornish fish, Flourish Farm vegetables, and dry-aged meat sizzle over the hearth. Traditional Cretan clay pots cradle slow-cooked youvetsi hot pots, their aroma rising with the smoke. The design, by Box 9 Studio (also behind SMOKESTAK and manteca), takes inspiration from Greece’s rugged terrain — eucalyptus greens, natural stone, dark wood — creating a sanctuary above the street.

“The feeling of walking through the market and then you’re in a sanctuary… You feel like you’re on top of the world,” says Calombaris. “It’s unpretentious and delicious.”

OMA’s kitchen is helmed by Jorge Paredes, formerly of Sabor, working closely with David Carter, founder of  OMA,  AGORA, SMOKESTAK and co-founder of Manteca. The menu reimagines classic Greek dishes with bold flair.

Share plates span hung sheep’s yoghurt with salt cod XO sauce, hummus masabacha with tahini and zhoug, and warm wood-fired breads.

From the raw bar, there's yellowfin tuna with clementine and aged soy, or gilthead bream with jalapeño aguachile and datterini tomato. The stunning menu features Santorini fava with capers and soft-boiled egg, and harissa-grilled prawns with cucumber tzatziki. There's an Aegean spirit to the food here. Cornish squid comes skewered, brushed with garlic and za’atar oil and finished with a dusting of sumac.

Desserts are elegant and elemental. There's rizogalo rice pudding with balsamic black figs, and olive oil ice cream with fennel pollen and a generous drizzle of Cretan olive oil.

The 400-bin wine list, curated by Emily Acha Derrington and led by Alessandra Tasca, celebrates coastal wines and lesser-known Greek varietals.

“Greeks are not good at marketing,” says Calombaris. “Italians are. But Greek food is getting its act together. It's more creative, but keeping that soul of Hellenism.

“A great example of Greek being done well,” he adds. “Super cool but not clichéd. Goddam delicious.”

OMA
2-4 Bedale Street, SE1 9AL
London, United Kingdom

Agora brings Athenian fire to Borough Market

Tucked beneath OMA, its refined upstairs sibling, AGORA is where Borough Market meets the smoky soul of Athens. Enter through the steel-framed Crittall shopfront on Bedale Street. There, a two-metre charcoal rotisserie turns whole animals sourced from Somerset and Cornwall.

The perfect no reservations pitstop, AGORA is open from noon until late. During a fast-paced lunchtime, guests can pop in for a bite from the rotisserie, eaten at the counter. In the evening, it's a more indulgent affair.

Inspired by the vibrant street markets of Greece, AGORA is bold, unfussy, and irresistibly good. Rolled lamb shoulder, marinated with garlic, lemon zest and oregano, melts into wood-fired flatbreads slathered with spinach tzatziki and crispy garlic. There's pork kontosouvli brushed with rosemary and pork fat, and pasture-fed Somerset Saxon chicken.

Bright, citrus-forward cocktails balance the depth of the grill with refreshing sharpness.

“David Carter, founder of SMOKESTAK and co-founder of Manteca, says AGORA is the “gritty” counterpart to OMA’s romance — and if this is grit, we’ll take it by the skewer.”

AGORA
2-4 Bedale Street, SE1 9AL
London, United Kingdom

Photography: Gilles Draps (food) and Christopher Horwood (interiors).