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On a drizzly Vancouver night, the glow from Selene Aegean Bistro spills onto Penticton Street, drawing people in from the rain. Inside, the compact dining room hums with conversation and the smell of grilled meat, seafood, and fresh herbs. Just over a year after opening, the Hastings-Sunrise restaurant that once had tables booked solid weeks in advance still feels lively and assured.
For brothers Yianni and Petros Kerasiotis, that evolution matters. Known for Nammos Estiatorio, Loulas, and AMA, they’ve helped define Vancouver’s modern Greek dining scene over the past decade. Selene, however, was always meant to sit slightly apart. “We knew we wanted it to be Greek,” Yianni tells the Straight, “but we didn’t want to repeat ourselves. The Aegean has so many influences—we wanted to explore that.”
William Johnson The idea grew from geography as much as ambition. The Aegean Sea touches Greece, Turkey, Cyprus, and parts of the Levant, and Selene’s menu reflects that broader coastline. It’s rooted in Greek cooking but open to the spices, techniques, and ingredients that naturally overlap across the region.
That perspective came into focus with the arrival of chefs Adrian Nate and Arish Dastoor. The two met years ago while working in hotel kitchens and have cooked together ever since; Nate coming from Italian restaurants, Dastoor from large-scale hotel operations. Before Selene opened, they traveled briefly through Greece, absorbing the way food is cooked and served there. “What stood out was how simple everything was,” Dastoor says. “No overworking dishes. The ingredients are doing the talking.”
William Johnson That lesson shapes Selene’s menu today. It changes three or four times a year, following the seasons and what’s available locally, including produce from Athiana Acres in Richmond. But getting there took some recalibration. Before opening, the team hosted a friends-and-family tasting, a standard industry test run. The feedback was blunt. “Some of the spices were overpowering,” Yianni recalls. “It didn’t feel balanced yet.” The kitchen pulled back, refined, and landed on a version of the menu that better reflected their intentions.
William Johnson When Selene opened in late 2024, the response was immediate. Influencer posts flooded social media, reservations vanished, and expectations climbed quickly. Yet behind the scenes, the opening felt unusually calm. “It was honestly the smoothest opening I’ve been part of,” says Dastoor. “We had a strong team from the start, people who wanted to be here. That makes all the difference.”
William Johnson Over the past year, Selene hasn’t reinvented itself so much as settled into its strengths. The menu leans into family-style dining, plates meant for the centre of the table, encouraging sharing and conversation. Some dishes have become fixtures, while others emerged organically as favourites.
That confidence is especially clear in the lamb chops, a dish that wasn’t part of Selene’s opening lineup but has since become one of its signatures. The chops arrive deeply caramelized, brushed with a pomegranate barbecue sauce that leans tangy rather than sweet, and finished with pistachio dukkah for texture. “That’s a good example of how the menu has grown,” Dastoor says. “It wasn’t part of the original plan, but guests kept coming back for it. Now it’s a staple.”
William Johnson If the lamb reflects Selene’s growing confidence, the mussels and octopus capture its broader Aegean point of view. Served in a shallow bowl of spicy loukaniko butter, the dish balances richness with brightness: briny shellfish, tender octopus, fennel, and fresh herbs layered together in a sauce that practically demands bread. The accompanying green olive focaccia isn’t an afterthought; it’s grilled, lightly charred, and essential for soaking up every last spoonful.
William Johnson Beyond dinner, the restaurant has continued to expand thoughtfully. A weekend brunch program launched midway through the year, offering a quieter, daytime expression of the menu. And in October, the team marked Selene’s first anniversary with a celebration that felt more like a neighbourhood gathering than a promotional event. Meze, drinks, live bouzouki music, and a packed room of friends, suppliers, and regulars, according to Kerasiotis.
Looking ahead, the Kerasiotis brothers are planning a small grab-and-go concept in a 200-square-foot space at the front of the building, focused on Greek coffee, pastries, and quick bites. It’s a modest next step, but one that fits Selene’s trajectory.
William Johnson A little over a year in, Selene feels both established and still evolving—grounded in Greek tradition, shaped by the Aegean, and guided by a team that pays close attention to what works. “We’re proud of where we are,” says Kerasiotis. “But we’re always looking at how to get better. That never stops.”
On a rainy weeknight, with tables full and plates moving steadily out of the kitchen, it’s clear Selene has found something more durable than opening buzz. The room feels settled, the cooking confident, and the momentum earned.
