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There they grow again
Ela Greek Taverna to expand across region
Ela Greek Taverna to expand across region
Pride, passion, determination, and a little bit of luck are the main ingredients in Ela Greek Taverna’s recipe for success. What started as one restaurant has now expanded into three locations. Soon, other parts of Atlantic Canada will be getting a taste of one of Halifax’s best restaurants.
Owners Costa Elles and Chris Tzaneteas opened Opa! Greek Taverna on June 6, 2000. “We use the recipes that our mothers and grandmothers have used over the years. Our quality is excellent – I would never feed anyone anything that I wouldn’t feed my son,” Costa says.
In 2008, a new location was opened in Bayers Lake, followed by a Dartmouth Crossing location in 2009. Chris and Costa frequently visit all three operations to ensure consistency. As Costa says: “We know what we want and we’re our worst critics.”
Despite their efforts to maintain consistency, Costa and Chris met an obstacle about a year ago when a trademark issue resulted in a name change. “A lot of our clients still don’t realize that it’s the same restaurant. It’s the same ingredients, menus, staff, owners and passion that we’ve always had. Opa is Ela, Ela is Opa.” When asked about the meaning of the word ela (pronounced el-la), Costa explains: “It’s a term of invitation, ‘come with me.’ Come eat, come dance, come join me.”
Pushing forward with their new name, Chris and Costa are carefully planning the next phase of their business. “The next market that we would like to get into is the one that provides us with the most opportunity. Moncton is thriving, but we’re even closer to opening a location in Saint John. There’s a possibility that within a year, we’ll be there.”
They’re also looking at opening a location in St. John’s, Newfoundland.
“It’s a challenge because we’ve built our product on our personalities. People know us in Halifax.” This is why Costa and Chris have already decided that they will have locals running the new locations.
As always, they will continue to ensure that even with this new expansion, their restaurants will still carry the same authenticity that the original Argyle Street location began with twelve years ago. Ela Atlantic Canada, come eat.
By Sarah Sawler
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