Calvin’s Hamburger Haven

The original Calvin’s was a Hamburger Havin of its own class. This poor substitute should never be allowed to use the name.

Chorizo burger! Heaven in your mouth! Friendly service great prices! Authentic mexican hamburguesas!

It’s not the Calvin’s of yore in a cool valentine diner. It has changed hands several times over the years, and is now located in a characterless strip mall you’d pass without noticing. Don’t let this generic looking strip mall deceive you, this little gem is on the end. I get a good feeling when a burger is served in wax paper. Like Michael S. said, «that’s how you know you are going to get a good greasy burger.» Locally owned, this place takes pride in a good cheeseburger, and the owner was there to talk to us afterwards. Something that is missing for a majority of burger joints. Ya the sides are standard, but the burgers stand out, and stand on their own on this strip of Seneca.

If you are looking for a decent burger joint this might be your place. Located on the south end of an older strip center, this is your bare bones burger joint.
I ordered the basic double burger with fries and a drink for around $ 7. The burgers are big and meaty, so much so I would have been happy with a single. They are cooked to order, slightly over done but juicy and good flavor. The bums are buttered and toasted and are not oversized for the meat, which is my biggest complaint for many places. Your standard toppings and condiments are available. I would suggest raw onions instead of the grilled but that is just me. The fries were thick and cooked perfectly; crispy outsides and tender inside. The only drawback was the order was a little skimpy, but the burger made up for it.
All in all a good burger and a place I would frequent again.

I first visited Calvin’s during 2012 when I was cleaning up the smaller, older burger places around the city. It must not have been good enough to stick in my mind because I recently realized that I forgot to write a review and I remember absolutely nothing about it. So back to Calvin’s I went. It’s probably just as well that I forgot to review it the first time — I think that my desire to create a level playing field that year forced me to stick with the same boring cheeseburger at every place I visited, relying on the quality of the burger and its construction to live or die by my sword. I got pretty jaded. Today, I have a little more perspective — perhaps some of Wichita’s less celebrated burger restaurants aren’t exactly bastions for ground beef perfection, but the unique touches they offer can make the experience better.
It was actually the disgruntled review of Tom H. that served as the catalyst. He’s obviously not happy that these burgers are not the ones from the Calvin’s of the early 1950’s. Aside from the name there’s actually not much of anything left from that era: the owners have changed hands multiple times and in 1990 it moved from its cool Valentine diner up the road to the strip mall in which it currently resides. Tom reminds me of my father, who has for decades clung to his perfect rendition of ribs that he used to enjoy at a restaurant that has since closed its doors. He wanders his limited restaurant landscape looking for ribs that were just as good as he remembers, but is forever unable to find ones that were as good as he remembers. I suspect he never will.
But were those bygone days really so good? Is there any possible way that the burgers of 60 years ago are better than the ones today? The quality of the cook aside, shipping and distribution for restaurants has come a long way since then. Sure, I rail on restaurants that rely on Sysco, but at least they (and other companies like them) provide a level of quality that would have been more difficult to obtain back then. Yes, you could factor in other things like ripe produce, hormone-​free cows, or any variety of other things, but for a place like this? Ground beef is ground beef. We are a nostalgic society: we always want to remember things as better than they really were. Is it likely that the quality of the burger has changed from what Tom remembers it? Yes. Is it possible that he’s perhaps remembering the burger for something more than it really was? Yes.
There are so many places around here that do an old timey burger that to be just another one of those would be boring, which is why I’m glad that Calvin’s has changed. I’m glad that the owner is decidedly not a «Calvin,» and that the food has continued to evolve to take advantage of the changing demographic of that neighborhood. Which is to say, I ate a cheeseburger topped with chorizo.
The burger was a third of a pound, cooked to high hell, partially because the patty was so thin but partly because it was left to develop a nice crust. It was sort of like a thicker Freddy’s patty, which is something in itself I’ve grown to appreciate. If you’re going to go this route, you better make sure you have crispy edges on your patty, and Calvin’s fit the bill — a little different and a little interesting.
But when you top that burger with spicy pork sausage, you can cover up a lot of mistakes. There was a lot more interplay here than I was expecting — the traditionally greasy chorizo was providing fat for the dry burger while the heavy dose of yellow mustard (part of the mustard-​pickle-​onion trifecta of the Wichita special) provided the acidity needed to break through the richness of all the meat. The also sauteed the onions a little bit, which I liked.
The standard fries are frozen, but fried well and salted, so they could be worse. Calvin’s also offers tots and sweet potato fries, which are also frozen, but they both hold up better in the freezer, so I’d say go for one of those.
Calvin’s may have lost most of their legacy, but without it, they’re not beholden to the burger standards of the 1950’s. They can offer burgers topped with hot dogs, pineapple, jalapenos, avocado, and even peanut butter if you’re so inclined. Their burgers are thin and a little crispy. The takeout menu says that «the burger legend continues,» but I think it’s the contrary: the burger legend is gone, never to return, and that’s okay.

NEVER, EVER confuse this «Calvin’s» with the original.
In the 50’s and 60’s Calvin Hamburger HAVEN ment just that. Sold out of a quaint pre-​fab metal burger stand barely large enough to house two staff and 3 customers, it served fabulous carry out burgers that I crave to this day.
Buddy Holly was killed, JFK was assassinated and CBH is lost forever. The only thing in the same solar system as a Calvin Burger might be the Cozy Inn in Salina, KS 85 miles away. But still short of the mark.
Nobody associated with this present day establishment likely ever tasted a real Calvin burger much less knows the secret to making one.
Sadly, Calvin Hamburger Haven is gone forever. Avoid the tears of regret. Skip this sham and feel good about yourself for having fasted…

I’m not sure, but I may have just had a burg-​asm.
While biting into Calvin’s standard chili cheeseburger, the searing, molten mass of cheese and chili, mixed with thinly-​sliced grilled onions and almost-​paper-​thin dill pickles, administered a thrilling mix of both pleasure and pain. The hamburger patty, irregularly composed of chewy and tender, juicy and crisp, nestled between well-​toasted grilled buns, was like nothing I had tasted anywhere around here outside of my own kitchen. I tried to express how wonderful the first bite of burger was to my wife, and found myself almost choking on my own drool (sorry to be crude, but I’ve never drowned on my own oral digestive facilitators). Tears filled my eyes as a silly grin spread across my face.
The chili burger is of sufficient size and composition that you want to leave it in the paper wrapper as long as possible, and then unwrap the remains and eat it with a fork on the thoughtfully-​provided small plate.
My wife had their standard grilled hot dog with chili, which is served open-​faced and contains an additional half hot dog in the bun. It was good as grilled hot dogs go, but not as good as my chili burger.
The substituted tater tots (for french fries) were hot, crisp and plentiful. Sonic could learn from this place about how to cook tater tots.
Beverages are self-​serve Coke products, always a plus for me. Atmosphere is small, clean hole-​in-​the-​wall burger place, with good lighting and some of those motivational posters on the wall. Counter service is prompt and friendly.
With the affordable prices and great burgers here, I can’t see how people spend 2x as much at chain burger boutiques like Five Guys.

Calvin’s is a little place just South of Seneca bowl. The only thing that really sets them apart is their grilled buns. The Burger itself Is a little on the dull side. I seems to be A processed cookie cutter type burger and no seasoning to speak of. Like I said the bun is its saving grace, they also have good grilled onions, you can also add hotlinks and you can wash it all down with a bottle of Mexican Coke.

I like Calvin’s. The burgers are about 5.50 with fries and a drink. The burgers are served wrapped in wax paper, that’s how you know you are going to get a good greasy burger. The Jalapeño Burger is above average spicy but very tasty. The fries a not fresh cut, but still pretty average. Don’t go at the height of lunch hour, there’s a chance you’ll get your food before you get a table.

I had heard was a good place to get a good burger was Calvin’s. I finally got a chance to check out it out and was looking forward to a good burger.
Calvin’s is a restaurant with about a doz. booths, and is very comfortable little place. I ordered at the counter a ¹⁄₃ lb single cheeseburger combo, which included a drink and fries for about $ 5.50. They also have double burger for a little more.
If only took about 5 min for the combo to come. Well, I have to say I was a little disappointed when I saw it because it was not the burger I was expecting. I was expecting a thick, juicy patty but this was a flat thin processed patty and the fries were also the ones, which come in a bag, not homemade. I have to say it tasted liked it looked, no flavor, and more like a soy burger.
I didn’t want to write this review because it was such a disappointment. I had looked forward to Calvin’s because I had heard such good things about it, but I am sorry but I can’t recommend it for the burgers.