If you’re a nightowl in Vancouver like me, you will inevitably have experienced the same problem. You’re up at 3am, hungry and there isn’t anything to cook at home or you simply don’t feel like putting in the effort. Unlike other major cities in the world that seem to never sleep, Vancouver seems to sleep early. Most restaurants closed at 9pm (and just about everything else is closed at 6pm on most days) and even the latest are done by 10pm. That leaves your late night dining options between that one 24-hour Chinese restaurant and the multitudes of gross fast food places. Those are fine and dandy when you need some grub after a long night of drinking at the club and such but there has to be better options out there. This sort of inspired me to see what happens in Vancouver (mostly food-wise…) when the streets are empty and when seemingly everyone is asleep but me in a series of posts I’ll call Vancouver After Hours.
My search for 24-hour restaurants in the city of Vancouver has come up with very few establishments that aren’t named Denny’s and McDonald’s so I’ll probably go give all of them a try at some time or another.
Apparently Calhoun’s is a common hangout for University of British Columbia students due to being open round the clock, the free Wi-Fi and the close proximity to the main campus so it was a good place to study outside of your dorm room. As a UBC alumni, I can say I’ve never been here but that’s probably because I didn’t live on campus and…well, I didn’t do much studying anyways. I arrived at around 3am on a night when it was starting to snow, which made it even more difficult to spot Calhoun’s from my car. The outside is rather dimly lit so you’d never know it was open if you weren’t aware of the fact already.
As I sort of expected due to the weather, the place was almost empty save for a couple of tables of students on their laptops. A friend told me later that you could probably expect Calhoun’s to be at least half full at that ungodly hour. The emptiness also applied to the staff as I stood at the counter for about ten minutes, watching Sportcenter, until a cashier popped out from the back.
Looking through the refrigerated glass displays, there were quite a few appetizing, homestyle dishes available including bowls of chicken curry on rice ($7.75), a gigantic sheppard’s pie (a steal at $7.25 considering it’s huge), slices of chicken pizza ($3.25 each), and various paninis and wraps. You could also get a freshly made sandwich for about five to seven bucks and thankfully for any student, they have plenty of beers on tap and in bottles.
I got a dish of perogies ($6.75) since they looked rather good and I haven’t had perogies in forever. You get eight perogies covered in crispy bacon and caramelized onions, served with a cup of sour cream. I should probably let you know that they’re reheated. This is a cafe, not really a restaurant so you can expect most of the food to be reheated rather than made fresh.
My perogies weren’t bad. The cheese and potato filling was nice and you can’t argue with bacon and caramelized onions. As far as microwave food goes, it’s rather good but I probably wouldn’t order them again. If you’re a college student and you don’t know how to cook, then they’re probably amazing but for the rest of us, they’re just okay.
I do, however, hear good things about the avocado and shrimp sandwich so I’ll probably be back to try it. I had a lot of shrimp sandwiches when I was over in England, something we don’t often get here in Vancouver sandwich shops. It’s an interesting combination.
The atmosphere here is warm and comfortable. I imagine it’s entertaining during the day when a bunch of UBC students come for a beer or three but at night, it’s like being in a log cabin. If you’re looking for a comfortable place with Wi-Fi and a decent bite to eat…especially in the middle of the night, give Calhoun’s a look.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I know I’m nitpicking, but you’re a UBC alumnus, not alumni. Alumni is plural.
Like you, I’m also an alumnus and, like you, I haven’t been to Calhoun’s either. I think I’d be more inclined to go to, say, a Bread Garden or something.
Hmm doesn’t look bad, but I think I’d rather go for late night pho instead!