How actor and comedian Andrew Phung spends a day off in Toronto

Andrew Phung, best known for his hilarious portrayal of Kimchee Han on the CBC breakout series Kim’s Convenience, is a busy dude. In addition to creating the CBC show Run the Burbs and hosting the Flavour Network’s Big Burger Battle, he’s also emceeing the 14th annual Canadian Screen Awards this Sunday, a celebration honouring excellence in Canadian film, television and digital media production. Ahead of the awards, the comedian and actor (an eight-time Canadian Screen Award winner himself) took a moment to walk us through a day off in his life—complete with gelato for breakfast, shopping for his two boys (nine and 12), and an impassioned Costco run.

Morning

On my days off, I really indulge in sleep. My wake-up time is so luxurious that I almost don’t want to admit it. On a Saturday, we’re talking 9 or even 9:30 a.m.

I’m not a coffee drinker, so the first thing I do is head straight to the 3D printer we got as a family Christmas gift this past year. I like to see how the latest projects my sons have been working on have turned out. We’re kind of nerdy over here. I’d be lying if I said the first thing I made on that printer wasn’t a Star Trek phaser.

Once I’m properly awake, my wife, kids and I head into the backyard for some kind of sport. Usually it’s basketball or hockey, depending on the season and who’s feeling the most competitive.

After we’ve worked up an appetite, we walk over to our beloved neighbourhood haunt, Café Serano, for pastries or croissant sandwiches. They’re every bit as good as what you’d find at a top-tier café yet somehow are still priced like it’s 2012. They make gigantic Texas doughnuts. I’m from Calgary, so one look at one of those things transports me straight back to Grade 2, when we had Texas Doughnut Day at school. You can’t keep me away from one of those oversized, gloriously yeasty monsters. And if I’m really treating myself, I won’t say no to a scoop of gelato on the side. It’s 4 p.m. somewhere.

From there, I head to Treehouse Collectibles on Donlands with my family. This isn’t your typical toy store; it’s an old-school vintage collectible shop—the kind of place that feels like it should be spelled S-H-O-P-P-E.

The shelves are packed with the toys of my youth: She-Ra, He-Man, Ninja Turtles and all kinds of other nostalgic treasures. I get to tell my boys about the cartoons I grew up watching and the characters that shaped my childhood, and we chat with the owner about how toys used to be designed and made. The best part is that there’s always new inventory. Even though we go once a week, there’s always something new to discover and a fresh conversation waiting to happen. It’s one of those rare places that feels different every time you walk through the door.

Related: How Ginny & Georgia star Chelsea Clark spends a day off in Toronto

Afternoon

On the practical side, I’ve got to do errands. I’m going to Dollarama. I’m picking up dry cleaning, getting pants hemmed, making a stop at Canadian Tire. And, ultimately, I’m doing a Costco run.

Now, let me be clear: Costco is not a chore. Costco is a pleasure. I’m a second-generation Canadian, the son of Vietnamese immigrants who viewed the ability to shop at Costco as one of the ultimate signs that you’d made it in this country. To them, a giant cart overflowing with bulk groceries wasn’t excess—it was security, abundance and success.

I’ve fully embraced the family tradition. I even 3D-printed a tray that clips onto the shopping cart and can hold both a hot dog and a soft drink. I love the place. I go in with a list, and for the most part, I stick to it. I don’t get distracted by the sample stations, and I pride myself on being a disciplined shopper.

That said, discipline goes only so far. I’ve also been known to come home with a Ninja slushie machine, a red-light therapy mask and the occasional massage gun. Costco has a way of convincing you that the thing you didn’t know existed five minutes ago is suddenly an essential household purchase.

On less chore-heavy days, I’ll take the time to explore the city. If the weather’s nice, I’ll see what’s happening around town that weekend, and if there’s a street festival or cultural event, we’ll usually head there. If there’s a comic convention, a Pokémon pop-up or a toy show, chances are you’ll find us wandering through it.

As a dad, I feel a responsibility to expose my kids to the arts, especially at a time when so much arts education has been slashed by the province. Sometimes that means stopping by Gwartzman’s Art Supplies or picking up cans of spray paint from Collective on Spadina and letting the boys transform scrap wood into backyard murals. Other times it’s showing them how people express themselves through fashion by digging through the vintage shops in Kensington Market. That neighbourhood is a reminder that creativity doesn’t just belong in galleries or classrooms—it’s something you can wear, build, paint and stumble across on an ordinary Saturday afternoon.

We also really like cheese. And everyone knows Kensington is the fromage centre of Toronto. We’re not particularly loyal to either Cheese Magic or Global Cheese. The truth is, my kids are just fascinated by the fact that cheesemongers exist. The idea of a store devoted entirely to cheese feels delightfully absurd to them. There’s something charming about browsing wheels, wedges and blocks with the guidance of someone whose entire job is knowing cheese.

Related: What multimedia artist Sook-Yin Lee loves about Kensington Market

Evening

Before we head home, we’ll either grab pizza from our favourite spot, Via Mercanti, or make our way to Chinatown for dinner. We don’t really care where we end up, but we do have one rule: every visit has to be somewhere new. So far, that policy has never let us down.

When we finally get home, it’s time to wind down. Lately, we’ve started a family tradition of working our way through the ’80s movies that were a big part of my childhood. Nothing gives me more pleasure than watching my sons become completely enraptured by The Goonies or seeing them enjoy The Wizard and Fred Savage the same way I did.

One of my favourite discoveries was Planes, Trains and Automobiles. As the child of immigrants, I missed a lot of the pop culture touchstones other Canadian kids grew up with, so getting to experience that classic for the first time alongside my own kids, as a Canadian dad, felt special.

After the boys go to bed, my wife and I usually get a couple of hours to ourselves. We love sharing movies and TV shows with each other. Lately, I’ve been doing homework for the Canadian Screen Awards, so she rewatched Heated Rivalry with me, along with things like Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie and Blue Heron. What we’re watching almost doesn’t matter. It’s just nice to spend time together before bed.

Which brings me to my completely absurd sleep routine. As a touring comedian, restful sleep can be hard to come by, so I’ve assembled what can only be described as an elite-level sleep set-up. First comes the Costco red-light mask as part of my pre-bed ritual. Then it’s the CPAP machine, a weighted blanket, a tuque pulled down over my face and enough white noise to fill a concert venue. It’s a lot. I’m just grateful my wife still loves me.