Vancouver’s newest dining destination is sending guests on a Mediterranean culinary journey. At the recently opened EXchange Hotel in Downtown Vancouver’s Financial District, you’ll find Hydra Cafe + Bar – a Mediterranean cuisine concept in an elegant and impressive setting.

Hydra Menu

Named after the culinary Greek island in the Aegean Sea, Hydra Estiatorio (pronounced ‘hee-dra’) presents a menu of refined Greek cuisine that draws up upon classic ingredients and traditional cooking styles. Many dishes are family-style with exciting tableside food preparations.

You’ll find fish and seafood options, including whole grilled fish, ceviche, grilled octopus and chilled seafood platters. Other Mediterranean favorites include Forno-roasted leg of lamb, linguini in lobster sauce, grilled vegetables and more.

The menu was created under Executive Hotels Culinary Director, Chef Mark Greenfield’s direction (Formally of Fairmont Pacific Rim, Italian Kitchen and Coast Restaurant) and is implemented by Executive Chef Ioannis Gerolymatos, himself a born-and-raised native of Greece whose culinary journey has taken him around the world to pursue his passions.

Hydra Cafe

Hydra’s second concept is a café located on the ground level that offers all day dining in an elegant space; guests can enjoy morning coffee and pastries, along with sandwiches and salads in the afternoon. At night, the cafe transforms into a Mezze bar offering small plates, wines and cocktails.

Hydra Interior

The warm, rustic bi-level space seats 180 guests and features large floor-to-ceiling windows, aged hardwood flooring, sand-colored Venetian-plastered walls and a sun-bleached millwork ceiling.

The main dining room features cascading sheers, rich leather banquettes, ancient olive oil casks, and a central marble bar boasting a unique “fish scale” tile motif. Decorating one long Venetian plastered wall is a large-scale “wave painting” by the famed Greek artist Antoni Titakis. His life’s work has been spent exploring the textures, colors and movement found in the ocean.

Two elevated VIP dining booths are illuminated by spectacular custom made Scabetti chandeliers of swirling schools of fish, made of fine bone china.

A beautiful white spiral staircase connects the ground and upper floors between the cafe and the main dining room. The cafe interior is accented by 14-foot Pantheon-inspired columns, locally crafted wooden bookshelves and a linear fireplace which pay homage to the old philosopher libraries of ancient Greece.

There is also an exclusive private dining cabana that is designed with terrazzo stone floors, comfortable lounge-style furniture and hand-blown glass lanterns. The space can be reserved for the evening, offering views of the 60-foot hotel atrium and Pender Street.

What We Tried

At a recent media dinner, we tried an variety of their offerings including:

• Spreads (Melitzana, Tarama, Fava, Xtipiti, Tzatziki, Menta) with made-to-order pita bread
• Hydra Special (paper thin zucchini)
• Grilled Octopus
• Kefalograviera (fried cheese saganaki)
• Salads: Tomato, Green, Organic Heirloom Beets
• Whole fish (sea bream) in sea salt
• Grilled fish (perch) with olive oil and lemon sauce
• Whole Forno Roasted Chicken
• Forno Roasted Whole Leg of Lamb
• Lobster Pasta
• Desserts (Halva, Cream of the Crop, Greek Yogurt)

To start, we enjoyed warm made-to-order pita breads with a variety of fresh, house prepared spreads including melitzana, tarama, fava, xtipiti, tzatziki, and menta.

The Hydra Special featured paper thin zucchini and egg plant tzatziki. These deep-fried delights were incredibly delicious and addictive. I could eat the whole stack myself.

The Kefalograviera was a traditional Greek cheese dish with a salty and a spicy taste and creamy in texture.

Next up were a trio of refreshing salads: Organic Heirloom Beets (heirloom leafy beets, red-wine vinegar, extra virgin olive oil), Green Salad (romaine, scallions, dill hydra vinaigrette), and Tomato Salad (vine-ripened tomatoes and feta). I enjoyed the presentation of the salads and the freshness of the ingredients.

Hydra specializes in family-style platters and these were the highlights of the evenings. The Whole Forno Roasted Chicken was marinated with herbs and lemon.

Guests can also choose from the day’s fresh selection of seafood at the Raw Bar. Hydra offers whole fish in sea salt or grilled whole fish with tableside preparations.

The Linguini in Lobster Sauce was also a show stopper with the al dente pasta and tender lobster meat.

To finish off a fantastic meal, Pastry Chef Dimitrios Patsis prepared a variety of desserts for us to try. There was the Bougatsa, a Greek pastry filled with semolina custard, dusted with cinnamon-icing sugar, and finished with a caramel-chocolate ganache drizzle.

The platter featured Halva (yogurt mousse, cinnamon syrup, mastixa meringue), Cream of the Crop (lemon custard stuffed meringue, praline sponge, mandarin & blood orange caramel) and Greek Yogurt (imported directly from Greece).

Hydra sets itself apart as a unique dining destination in Vancouver with its multi-concept offerings, Mediterranean menu and tableside preparations. I enjoyed the dinner overall; my favourites were the pita bread with spreads, Hydra Special, Organic Heirloom Beets Salad, Whole Fish dishes and Bougatsa.

Hydra Estiatorio is open seven days a week, 7 AM until late. For more information, visit hydravancouver.com.

Hydra Estiatorio Mediterranean
825 W Pender St, Vancouver, BC
hydravancouver.com

With the trend towards eating more plant-based comes a new vegetarian restaurant onto Vancouver’s dining scene. Do Chay Saigon Vegetarian opened their doors just a few weeks ago at 1392 Kingsway and is owned and operated by the Do family who also run House Special in Yaletown and Green Lemongrass (one on Kingsway, another in Richmond).

I was recently invited to a media tasting at Do Chay. Here’s a look at what you can expect.

Do Chay Menu

“Do Chay” is a Vietnamese colloquial phrase which roughly translates to “vegetarian stuff.” The menu at Do Chay is vegetarian and almost entirely vegan and features a contemporary take on Vietnamese street food ($5 – $14), rice bowls ($13 – $15) and noodle bowls ($13) with exquisite presentation.

Warm and Inviting Interior

The warm and inviting interior features wood tones, pendant lighting and an exposed brick wall. There is a mix of dining tables and seating at the bar.

What We Tried

We started with the Monsoon Rolls which were delicate rice paper salad rolls with tofu, jicama, and fresh herbs. These were served with a chili pineapple sauce which offered a sweet and spicy kick to the nutty flavours of the salad roll.

Not on the menu yet are the Sticky Rice Squash Blossoms but hopefully, they make it a permanent item because they were amazing!  Sticky rice with mushroom and carrots were served inside a squash blossom and lightly deep-fried. Accompanied by house (sweet) soya sauce, these deep-fried delights were a winner in my books.

We also had the Banana Leaf-Wrapped Glass Dumplings which were steamed, rice flour dumplings stuffed with mushrooms. Moist, lightly chewy and nutty in taste.

The Coconut Rice Cakes were too beautiful to eat! These mini coconut milk rice cakes were cast iron seared and topped with cabbage, green onions, carrots and house vegan nuoc cham (fish sauce) drizzle.

I recommend eating the rice cakes in one bite because they have a creamy, coconut milk filling which bursts in your mouth! The sour, sweet, salty, savory and spicy nuoc cham drizzle contrasted the lightly sweet coconut milk rice cakes. I also enjoyed the smooth and silky texture of the rice cakes.

I love eggplant dishes so the Black Garlic Eggplant Rice Bowl was right up my alley. This claypot rice dish was rich in flavour and had braised eggplant, tofu, black garlic and greens.

The Vegan Pho was not your typical pho offering and had broccoli tempura, avocado, yuba, yo choy, daikon, lotus root, and rice noodles in a vegan pho broth. It was a comforting dish that felt light and healthy.

The Pan-Fried Daikon Cakes were a tasty street food item on the menu. These were made with rice flour, daikon, egg, salted radish, green onion, papaya slaw and accompanied by soya sauce.

The Do Chay Dumplings were also tasty house-made bites with snow pea and jicama fillings and placed on a bed of coconut milk with nuoc cham drizzle. The filling was nutty and crunch which contrasted to the smooth and sweet coconut milk.

And to wash it all down, we enjoyed an iced Vietnamese coffee.

Here are some behind the scene photos of Chef Yen Do (Head Chef and matriarch of the Do Family) making the wrappers for the Do Chay Dumplings.

Overall Impression

Whether you’re a vegetarian, vegan or meat-lover, I think you’ll enjoy the Vietnamese fare at Do Chay with their light, bright and fresh flavours. My favourites were the Sticky Rice Squash Blossoms, Coconut Rice Cakes, Do Chay Dumplings, Vegan Pho and Black Garlic Eggplant.

I was amazed by the attention to detail showcased in the intricate presentation of some of their dishes. I would definitely recommend others to check them out for a unique, modern take on Vietnamese cuisine.

Do Chay Saigon Vegetarian
1392 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC
www.instagram.com/eatdochay/