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The DownLow Chicken Shack

3.9 (20 reviews)
ModerateChicken Shop

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Original Sando
Anushka B.

I have been to DownLow before but did not know they opened this new location on UBC campus. It was my first time there! it is right by the bus stop so good location and there are a bunch of other restaurants in that line. I went on a Sunday afternoon so it wasn't too crowded and the service was pretty quick. They have about 3-4 tables inside and unfortunately, when I went there none of them were clean. I let the staff know that I would be getting the food to eat there hoping they would clean up the tables but that didn't happen. Eventually, I asked them to do so and they did immediately but the rag they used had a foul smell so it didn't really feel very clean. There were a lot of open garbage cans near the seating areas which I wasn't a fan of. A part from that, the food was good! I got their original spicy hot sando which was really big! The server was nice enough to cut it up for me. Just the sandwich without a meal was around $17 which I thought was pretty overpriced though. Their nuggets and tenders are pretty good as well but I'm not sure they are worth the price.

Michelle S.

Finally tried this fried chicken on campus. I've heard mixed reviews from friends so been always hesitant to try. We all got the tender (extra hot and medium) and fries ($18.25/each) since we aren't into dark meat. Honestly tasted average, pretty decent if a bit bland. Even the extra hot didn't taste spicy but rather just peppery, whereas the medium had a more pronounced herby flavour. Batter was way too flakey and fell apart really easily, which led me to believe it was either too thin or not fried long enough. Sauces were pretty good in terms of variety though, the honey mustard and sweet&sour were pretty good.

Side of milk
Luke Y.

Price/quality (4/4): This is their second location, and as with the original DownLow Chicken, you'd be hard-pressed to find better fried chicken anywhere else in Vancouver. Service (1/1): It's a busy fast food restaurant, but they still managed to serve me fairly quickly. Would I come here again: Yes

The Jerk
Shonah M.

DownLow Chicken has opened a second location here at UBC at what is becoming known as 'restaurant row' within the trolley bus loop. I had only recently had their Sando classic burger from their first location on Commercial Drive. This new second location is shiny brand new & more spacious. DLC has the funkiest coolest playlist - awesome beats to chow down to! The inspiration for DLC is Nashville hot chicken flavour & the delivery is fresh, juicy & fierce! I loved the taste of my Jerk sandwich! It had a decent kick to it & its not an overpowering heat that leaves you crying for mercy. Do check out DLCs menu as there's a variety of options to choose from. This location will be extremely busy especially during the lunch hour so plan accordingly as UBC is back in full session! Keep on clucking Yelpies!

Paula C.

Been wanting to try DLC for a long while and was happy to finally make a visit recently at the UBC location! I ordered the original to go. The burger is $15.75 without any sides - a bit pricier but after you see the burger and the hefty piece of fried chicken inside it does justify for the cost. It was great how you can choose the spicy level and the type of meat! The burger was stacked with the fried chicken, sweet and sour slaw, pickles and their DL sauce. Meat was moist and juicy! Only downside is I wished they either just wrapped their burger or have a bigger box for their burger so the bun doesn't get all squished for takeout and the chicken is definitely very greasy. But taste wise it was solid!

Fried chicken sandwich
Bridget M.

It's a fantastic sandwich. That cannot be disputed! But I'm ethically opposed to sandwiches I can't eat, hence the knocked-off star. Guys, this sandwich is not to scale. Four inches thick, oozing grease and sauce, its girth is barely restrained by two soggy slivers of potato bun. With every bite, pickles shoot out from all sides like one of those viral Tiktok videos of the crushing machines. If I could fit the entire thing in my mouth at once, I'm positive that the well-sliced chicken breading, thighs, bun and pickled onions would work in tandem to create a great flavor profile... but the way it is right now it just tasted like a bucket of fried chicken with some good side dishes. Maybe option for smaller sandwich for us clowns with tiny hands? Food for thought.

Small tender (mild) and fries

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4 months ago

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1 year ago

Chicken was too salty and truffle fries had no truffle taste, would prefer fried chicken in international food court

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4 years ago

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2 years ago

Great chicken sandwich. Impossible to eat but worth the mess. Shared the fries which was plenty for two of us.

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4 years ago

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Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen

2.0(1 review)
0.8 km•UBC

So disappointed in the meal I was served at this Popeye's near UBC. It's recently opened in the…read moreLelam plaza (Urban Fare is the main business here). I had a delicious meal at a Popeye's at the Hong Kong airport years ago, and have been interested in seeing what's on offer here in Vancouver. Sorry now that I wasted $13+ on a very mediocre lunch. What was wrong with it? Unfortunately, from the first bite the flavour was off. I got two pieces of breaded chicken (leg and thigh), "Cajun" fries and a fountain soda. Comes with a small biscuit (put it away to take home). So many carbs in one little meal! The chicken was fresh and very crisp, which was good. But the flavour of that crispy coating was unpleasant. I was shocked, actually. I expected something very tasty and it was very bland and meh. It had an off-putting taste to it I find hard to describe. I have made buttermilk fried chicken at home that was a lot tastier than this. It just lacked any kind of tasty flavour. The chicken itself was all right, it was moist and tasted of, well, chicken. But I expected something special in that coating and it was lacking anything enjoyable. I ate it, I did not enjoy it, and i will never eat Popeye's chicken again. The fries as well were tasteless. There was nothing Cajun about them except the artificial orange colour of whatever coating was on them. Again, bland, tasteless, uninteresting. How the heck do you put out fries called "Cajun" and they are completely boring? The best part of the experience was the very friendly, helpful counter person. She was a credit to Popeye's. She gets 5/5 for good service. The food gets a generous 2, although it hardly deserves it. If every Popeye's in Vancouver serves chicken this bad, I cannot fathom why they are popping up all over. It's a mystery to me, or maybe people just don't know how good fried chicken can taste. A big fat "NO!" to Popeye's from me!

Open Kitchen

Open Kitchen

2.5(8 reviews)
0.7 km•UBC
•$$

Returned recently for lunch on a weekday and was pleasantly surprised to see lots of improvement!…read moreThe salad bar was clean and the selection was awesome. The bar was filled and everything seemed organized and appealing. The stations were putting out food at a steady pace and everything tasted good with a few exceptions. The only suggestions I had are: 1. The hamburger buns are stale and dry... need to procure better bread. Same with the bagels, scones and bread slices. 2. The banana chips and pumpkin seeds are stale. These need to be changed more often. 3. The desserts like the bars and lemon loaves are really awful tasting and not bakery standard. Not sure why but may want to consider some quality control on this. Has anyone actually tried these desserts before they go out to everyone? 4. Might want to keep the bowls warm when placed on the counter for self serve. The food is cold once placed in the bowls. However I am very pleased how healthy and non-greasy the food is. I like the price point and I am now a regular. Great job and please keep improving so I can keep coming!! The servers are also very accommodating!

This is my second meal at the Open Kitchen since being trapped on campus for a conference. My first…read moremeal, dinner was slabs of warmed over roast beef covered in instant packet style gravy. I also got broccoli that was cooked, cold and raw all at the same time. Lots of bread and pasta options but if you are diabetic that's no good. The salad bar was literally a bowl of salad and bowl of cherry tomatoes. That's it. Went to bed hungry and discouraged. Fast forward to breakfast. Pancakes, bread, cereals, potatoes and bananas. There were sausages that some how managed to be white, despite not being from a white meat and tasted like they were cooked in the oldest grease ever. Rubbery "cheese omelet" which was instant eggs with greasy cheese in the middle. Thought I could eat whole grain cereal offering but guess what? No artificial sweetener to be had. I can pour corn syrup colored like maple on my pancakes, drink all the artificially sweetened soda I want, but I cannot have artificial sweeter in packets because that is "bad". Three kinds of yogurt but sugar is the second ingredient in all of them. And I am again hungry. Guess I will be going to the grocery store despite paying "inclusive meals". This really is some of the worst food I have ever had and I grew up eating free lunches from government surplus food at school.

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Open Kitchen
Open Kitchen - Chana Masala

Chana Masala

Open Kitchen - Matcha soft serve!!

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Matcha soft serve!!

School of Fish - $12 for this.... Ugh

School of Fish

2.0(4 reviews)
0.5 km•UBC

This is more like bad stadium food put into a food truck and priced to match. We ordered fish and…read morechips, it came out straight away with chips that seemed to have been sitting there a while with two half sized fish portions that probably came out of a large pack. I could make something way better at home. Filled the hole but that's it. After looking them up, they appear to be some sort of UBC catering company. Canteen food. Skip it and go to Starbucks or something.

"School of Fish" is a food truck, and its operated by UBC Food Services. Now, for those of you who…read moreknow me well, UBCFS hasn't really impressed me that often and i call them out frequently, mostly because their brick & mortar locations such as SB/Timmys/TripleOs are horrendous. But at least there's a saving grace for them, their food trucks. I think at the time of this writing, there should be at least 5-6 UBCFS trucks currently operating on campus. To start off, their menu is quite simple, and revolve around fish. Duh~ there is a fish taco, small/large fish and chips, a chowdar, etc. Pretty reasonable price for campus food i might say, but just a tidbit too expensive. 9$ for Fish and chips sounds alright but when the portion of the fish is just a bit smaller than an average chicken drumstick, overloaded with fries, and house made "saffron" tartar sauce, it doesn't strike me as fair. Then again, nothing on campus for food is really considered fair. The batter was very crispy but it was quite thick that when I bit into it, all the fish fell out like it was a hard shelled capsule. The fries are hand cut, very crispy, and seasoned well. The "saffron" tartar sauce, i think personally, is a gimmick, because you cant really taste the saffron at all with all that fat and sodium inside that box. Problem I have with UBCFS is that they are the only ones who approve and operate food services on campus, and when there is no "real" competition on campus, there is no one to keep them honest. Because, if there is a non-UBCFS affiliated fish & chip shack down the street offering 2pc cod and chips for 10$, people would be flocking there everyday non-stop. I always thought that. "What if Meat & Bread were to open a location on campus?" Im pretty sure it would be a sell out and profit maker, guaranteed, but alas, we students are unfortunately limited to eat what they call "reasonable" and delicious food. Ill agree with delicious, but not reasonable. School of Fish is a fabulous food truck, their Fish & Chips are good, their menu looks great! but the only reason why they get a 2 is unreasonable prices and portion sizes. A regrettable Two, out of Five.

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School of Fish - Fish and chips

Fish and chips

School of Fish
School of Fish

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Hanoi Old Quarter Restaurant

Hanoi Old Quarter Restaurant

4.2(74 reviews)
5.3 km•Kitsilano

The square spring "roll" is a reason to go experience this place. It is chock full of crab, shrimp,…read morevermicelli noodles making it a flavour bomb. They give you three of these lovelies and you covet your share! I've had these at other places but they do it exceptionally well. Our waiter was excellent, he was attentive when we needed him and personable which made the visit welcoming. Our main was the turmeric fish and WoW this dish delivered on taste, freshness and abundance. We needed some coaching on how to mix everything together and identify the ingredients but whoa we were blown away at the first bite. The shrimp paste that makes up the sauce is funky and an acquired taste that we love. It is very nice that it is on the side to allow for you to control the amount, we used it all and the waiter offered more. This restaurant is a labour of love, it is a good story of the family and it shows in the upkeep of the place (including the clean and spacious toilets). I'll be back! With friends!

Excellent food here but obviously specializing in north Vietnamese tastes . We had the FRIED CRAB…read moreMEAT & PORK SPRING ROLLS Chả Nem Cua Bể and the Crabmeat Spring Rolls Vermicelli | Bún nem cua bể. They tasted terrific and the service was good . Good Ambience is inside with plenty of seating . Few parking spots in underground out back . My only critique is no staff had refilled the paper towel dispenser in the restroom when I was there

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Hanoi Old Quarter Restaurant
Hanoi Old Quarter Restaurant
Hanoi Old Quarter Restaurant - Inside view of the delicious Pork and Crab Spring Rolls.  Nice ratio of crab to pork.

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Inside view of the delicious Pork and Crab Spring Rolls. Nice ratio of crab to pork.

The DownLow Chicken Shack - chickenshop - Updated October 2026

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