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Rotterdam has a new culinary hotspot in the historic Leuvehaven. Calan Restaurant & Bar has officially opened in the recently opened Haven Hotel Rotterdam, Curio Collection by Hilton. The restaurant brings together global flavours, creativity, and the city's multicultural energy in a refined yet accessible setting.
Calan is led by Executive Chef Michael Verhagen, renowned for the Michelin-starred Fitzgerald. Together with his team, he translates the diversity and dynamism of Rotterdam into dishes where flavour, experience and design come together. From the interior to the music, and from the menu to the cocktails, everything reflects the international city on the River Maas.
The name Calan refers to Pieter Caland, the engineer behind the Nieuwe Waterweg, who connected Rotterdam to the rest of the world in the 19th century. This idea also forms the foundation of the restaurant: a place where people come together around gastronomy, culture and creativity. Like the city itself, Calan is open, layered and constantly in motion.
The dinner menu is a culinary portrait of Rotterdam. Classic European cooking techniques are combined with seasonal ingredients and influences from cuisines around the world. The menu features Zeeland hamachi with a dashi vinaigrette and Turkish apricot chutney, a subtle reference to historic trade routes.
Verhagen’s signature dish, the Charlotte Potato, is a tribute to the city’s Surinamese and Javanese heritage. The slowly cooked potato is served with kombu, Surinamese masala and Indonesian seaweed. Dessert also tells a story: cantaloupe with sakura and umeboshi, inspired by Japanese hanami traditions.
With the opening of Calan Restaurant & Bar, the heart of Rotterdam gains a flavourful new meeting place, where the world quite literally comes together at the table.
