Take a Mediterranean vacation in the heart of Vancouver
Hydra Estiatorio Mediterranean & Bar will deliver you to the sun-kissed hills and the aquamarine waters of Greece. The stylish ambiance of this glass enclosed space is perfect to enjoy throughout the day and evening and has expansive seating options; ideal for events of any size.
Named after the beautiful culinary Greek island in the Aegean Sea, World Class Chef-driven Hydra Estiatorio Mediterranean & Bar is a Greek seafood restaurant with an engaging and lively 40-foot cocktail bar. Located in the EXchange Tower atrium, Hydra applies Greece’s time-honored ingredients with traditional cooking styles, focusing on quality Mediterranean dishes such as vine-ripened tomato salad with flat parsley and feta alongside exquisitely-tender grilled octopus garnished with lemon juice and olive oil, or lamb chops served straight from the grill with hints of garlic and oregano.
With a soaring 60-foot lobby atrium, and a complex, award-winning wine program featuring bottles from Greece and around the world and accompanied by refreshing handcrafted cocktails, Hydra Estiatorio Mediterranean & Bar is perfect for intimate functions, with a private space for up to thirty people, and full restaurant buy-outs for up to one hundred and fifty people.
We are a Greek Estiatorio which is an up-market restaurant; a level above the Taverna.
To produce our cuisine, we bring in a variety of Greek products such as our fava, oregano, award winning olive oil, capers, olives, Kefalograviera cheese and Halloumi from Cyprus.
Take a minute to visit our Raw Bar, see the fresh seafood on ice display, and pick your own fish. We import our seafood daily with Seabass and Seabream coming from Greece, wild-caught Fagri from New Zealand, and Kampachi from Hawaii, yet locally sourced salmon, oysters, and shrimp keep British Columbia front and center.
We debone, plate, and dress all our fresh fish tableside. Yes, it is an extravagance that not every restaurant invests in, but we feel if our customers are ordering top quality seafood, then this little bit of tableside theatre will enhance your dining experience. Tomato salad can be just tomato salad, but the Hydra Tomato Salad is special. Why? It's the locally grown, hand-picked, juicy vine ripened tomatoes. We’re sent the whole vine and pick them on site to order.
There are many amazing wines produced worldwide and Hydra features many of them; however, we have also curated an amazing selection of delicious Greek wines. The Greeks have been producing wine for thousands of years, so we encourage you to try a couple; we would be happy to walk you through the tasting notes!
There’s something to see in every corner of our beautiful dining room.
At Hydra, and as part of the EXchange Hotel, we believe curated art complements our curated menu. We hope you enjoy our feature “Gold Sea Star” sculpture above the Raw Bar and take delight in the photographic quality of the commissioned large swirling Greek sea painting by famed artist Antonis Titakis, located above the banquettes. Take a step back and look at it from different angles; the painting takes on unique qualities.
Did you walk up our grand circular staircase from the Mezze Bar? Our talented local Vancouver steel fabricators developed this unique design complimented by hand-milled Acacia wood treads, leather-wrapped handrails, and concealed LED lighting.
Take a look at our Cabana overlooking the atrium and request to be seated there. It's a bright, airy space draped in light linens and custom canvas. We keep it cozy with heated floors under the imported large slab terrazzo stone.
Did you notice the little fishy chandeliers? They are custom Scabetti works of art imported from London, featuring hundreds of handmade fine bone china porcelain fish swimming in a circular school. We hope they complement the fish scale tile pattern on our back bar.