The Olympics are all the craze here, and being 3rd on the medal league, Team GB is beside itself with joy.

(Just don't go into the fact that nobody really seems to know what "Great Britain" means - I've learnt the hard way, over a couple too many beers, an overly-inquisitive Aussie couple and a table-full of English people, not to ever open THAT can of worms again. Lesson #2 of that night = NEVER say a Yorkshire accent sounds American... not me, I swear...)

As "Official Legal Sponsor" of the Olympics, Freshfields has really thrown itself  hand-over-heart into the games.

Free Olympics/Paralympics ticket for every employee + free day off = check.
Unashamed promotion and advertising and self-congratulating = check.
Eerily half-empty offices as half the firm takes clients to Olympics events = check.
Frustratingly snail-paced internet and 2% productivity because everyone else remaining in the office is watching the Olympics on BBC Sport = check.

And finally...
Random but extremely scrumptious free lunch for all employees with too much food, too much booze and too much OTT-ness = CHECK.

So, Managing Partner sends out firm-wide email = let's have a 'celebrate the games' lunch the day before the Opening Ceremony!

Everyone else = yeah yeah whatever. Ah well, free food, fine...

On the day, we walked into the staff restaurant expected a decent meal, nothing more...


Let me tell you, when a firm like this decides to celebrate, it really... celebrates. Even if it's an unofficial, casual in-house event.

As I walked in, I was ambushed by a glass of Pimm's... alcohol + free = hey are you kidding me can I even refuse?!

And then, all I could see were plates and plates of food... every single table is heaving with plates and plates of appetizers. The rest of the wait staff are busy plating up heaps and heaps of unhealthy but oh-so-good cheeseburgers, curly fries, hot dogs, quiches, canapes and shoving them into our greedy hands.