CombatCritic's "TravelValue"

World traveler ... 44 countries and counting; Amateur chef ... studied 3 years in Pozzuoli Italy; Published author of reviews, articles, and two popular blogs; Producer of successful YouTube channels. CombatCritic is Yelp "Gold" Elite '14/'15/'16/'17/'18, Zomato "VERIFIED CONNOISSEUR", Booking.com "GENIUS", and Foursquare "INSIDER" Mangia Bene e Paghi Poco (Eat Well and Pay Little) On the Front Lines in the Battle Against Mediocrity - Follow Me To TravelValue ... That's A Freakin' Order!

Monday, December 10, 2057

Countries Visited ... So Far ... 41 And Counting!

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List (Alphabetical)

Bahrain – Kingdom of Bahrain

Belgium – Kingdom of Belgium

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bulgaria – Republic of Bulgaria

Canada

Croatia – Republic of Croatia

Czech Republic

Greenland (Kalaallit Nunaat/Grønland)

France – French Republic

Germany – Federal Republic of Germany

Greece – Hellenic Republic
Holy See

Hungary

India – Republic of India

Ireland
Israel

Italy – Italian Republic

Jamaica

Japan

Korea, South – Republic of Korea

Luxembourg – Grand Duchy of Luxembourg

Macedonia – Republic of Macedonia

Malta – Republic of Malta

Mexico – United Mexican States

Micronesia – Federated States of Micronesia

Monaco – Principality of Monaco

Montenegro

Netherlands

Palau – Republic of Palau

Palestine - State of Palestine
Portugal – Portuguese Republic

San Marino – Republic of San Marino

Saudi Arabia – Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Slovenia – Republic of Slovenia

Spain – Kingdom of Spain

Switzerland – Swiss Confederation

Tunisia – Republic of Tunisia

Turkey – Republic of Turkey

United Arab Emirates

United Kingdom – United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

United States – United States of America

- Guam

- Puerto Rico

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Title: Countries Visited ... So Far ... 41 And Counting!

Key Words: countries, country, nation, capitol, Google Maps, Google, map, maps, city, state, world, earth, visit, visited, traveler, 44, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, Yelp

Sunday, December 10, 2056

Why Should You Read My Reviews And Subscribe To TravelValue?

I served my country in the United States Air Force for over 20 years and have visited 44 countries over the last 35 years, all without spending over $75 per night for a nice hotel room and dining in excellent restaurants for well under $25 per person. How do I do it? Through diligent research, exploration, trial and error, and tapping local knowledge.

Would you like to stay in a central, 3-star hotel in a major city for under $20 per night? How about a room with a balcony and view of the Himalayas while attending teachings with the Dalai Lama for just $5 per night? Or a beachfront hotel for $13 per night? Maybe a meal prepared by a 5-star chef for less than $20? Well, you have come to the right place ...

CombatCritic's "TravelValue"

Having several popular travel blogs CombatCritic.com and received numerous accolades from several of the top travel and restaurant websites/apps (Yelp, TripAvisor, Zomato, Tabelog, Booking.com), you can trust my opinions.

Unlike many reviewers who are either afraid to tell the truth or have personal relationship with businesses and biased views, I reserve 5-stars (10 Bombs on my blog) for only the most flawless restaurants, accommodations, businesses, attractions and destinations, those where you absolutely and without a doubt get the most “bang-for-the-buck”.

CombatCritic.com

I try to remain as objective as possible in all of my reviews, providing the pros and cons as I see them and a rating based on the overall “value” as compared to similar entities in similar locations. I accept no "freebies" and only identify myself as a critic after having been a customer and paid the bill, so you can trust my reviews.

Here is a breakdown of my ratings both on my blogs (where I use a ten point scale) and on travel and dining websites (that all use 5 point Likert-type scales) ...

If I hate a place, they get 1-2 Bombs (1-star)

If so-so with numerous”issues", they get 3-4 Bombs (2-stars)

If average (the vast majority of businesses fall into this category if you look at the distribution of my ratings), they get 5-6 Bombs (3-stars)

If above average, they get 7-8 Bombs (4-stars)

If they are one of the very rare “best of the best” values in my experience, they get 9-10 Bombs (5-stars – I always round up from bombs to stars because I use a 10 point Likert-type scale in order to be more discernible).

Now that you understand my philosophy and ratings, on to my reviews …

CombatCritic

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Title: Why Should You Read My Reviews And Subscribe To My Blog?

Key Words: combatcritic, travelvalue, travel, value, combat, critic, review, reviews, objective, restaurant, hotel, attraction, destination, Italy, USA, India, Asia, Europe

Monday, September 9, 2019

Portland, OR: Holy Cow! Does Voodoo Doll Have Something In His Pocket Or Is He Just Happy To See Me?

Voodoo Doughnut

22 SW 3rd Avenue

Portland, OR 97204

Old Town

Phone number (503) 241-4704

Website: voodoodoughnut.com

Prices: $$$$

If you have never been to Voodoo Doughnut, give 'em a try. The original location is here in downtown Portland (Old Town), but they have shops in Eugene (OR), Denver (CO), Universal Studios Hollywood (CA) and Orlando (FL), as well as Austin (TX).

These photos are from our trip to the original shop in Old Town yesterday. As you can see, their look is quite eclectic, colorful, and retro, the menu a bit pornographic, and THE DONUTS ARE GREAT!

Most donuts run between 75¢ (plain cake) to $3.25 with a couple in the $5 to $7.50 range. Dozens range from $14 to $18 unless you want to pick your own. They even have vegan doughnuts, although I do not know how many. You can reportedly get a coffin (photo above) full of donuts for $130.

Their menu is a tad on the perverted side, with a Cock-n-Balls going for $6.50, a Triple Chocolate Penetration is $2, a Butterfingering is $2, an Old Dirty Bastard is $3, a Portland Cream (the Official Doughnut of Portland) is $2.25, and /or, finally, a Custom Cock going for $7.50, not a bad deal considering the fact that creating a doughnut that looks like a rooster is probably a very intricate and time consuming process! C'est la vie, after all, their slogan is: "The Magic Is In The Hole".

We got a Bacon and Maple ($3.25), an Apple Fritter ($3), and a Voodoo Doll ($3.50). The bacon and maple was glazed and covered with maple icing with crisscrossed slices of fried bacon on top and it was OK, but the taste was a bit weird and not really my thing. The apple fritter was big and tasty, but it could have been much crispier in my opinion. And, last-but-not-last, the voodoo doll (see above) was also glazed, iced with chocolate, colorfully decorated to look like a perverted gingerbread man complete with a sugary confection erection (see photos). As Harry Carey would have said, "Holy cow!".

BOO!

Hey, Voodoo Doll, is that something in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?

Yep, you're happy

The only negatives are that you should have your E ticket ready ("E" does not stand for "electronic" - SoCal natives will know what I am talking about) because there always seems to be a line outside, sometimes with several dozen people queueing up to get in. They even have a serpentine setup for their line just like the ones at the Magic Kingdom. Finally, the cashiers are never particularly friendly, not quite rude, but seemingly indifferent to customers. I presume that after their 700th customer of the day, they could get a bit cranky, but there is never an excuse for not treating customers with the utmost courtesy, friendliness, dignity and respect. They get a two BOMB deduction for the grouchy employees, otherwise, Voodoo Doughnuts would have gotten my PERFECT SCORE and a spot on CombatCritic's "WALL OF FAME".

So, march on down to a Voodoo Doughnut near you for an overload on your sensations' of sight, smell, and taste. The massive wall painting just across the street wraps this place up in a nutshell: "Keep Portland Weird". If you happen to go to the original location, tell 'em CombatCritic sent you ... HOOAH!

CombatCritic Gives The Original Voodoo Doughnuts 8 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

Eight Bombs Equates To:

Translation for Civilians: "What-The-Fuck ... Over!"

Oh, and keeping with the theme of this review ... BITE ME!

Read this and many other reviews from around the world on my popular blog, CombatCritic's TravelValue - www.CombatCritic.com - 70,000+ Visitors a Year ... And Counting!

Saturday, August 31, 2019

Washougal, WA: SOLID - Shelby's Rivals KC Barbecue, Some Of The Best You Can Get

Shelby's Grille
419 E Street
Washougal, WA 98671
Phone number: (360) 835-1103
Prices: $$$$

SOLID. No BS here like I had at a place in downtown Washougal recently, Shelby's has fresh, hot food (not frozen); excellent and friendly service; and fair prices. What more can you ask for?

It was chow time, so we headed to Shelby's for the first time and I am not quite sure why we waited so long because I had heard good things about them. The decor is simple and nostalgic with tasteful maple wainscoting and knick-knacks adorning the walls. Best of all, it was very clean! We were met with a smile and a welcome, then taken immediately to a booth in the main dining room (the pub-style lounge was also an option).

I asked about happy hour and was told that it was from 2-5pm daily in the lounge, so we were a bit late anyway. Their happy hour food menu looked appealing with a few real bargains like a hamburger or BBQ sandwich for $7 or street tacos for $3 a piece. I was a bit dismayed by their happy hour drink discounts with just 50¢ off of wells ($8-$11), wine ($9), and beer ($6). Their drinks are not particularly cheap, so a food deal is definitely in order.

My wife got the Mushroom and Havarti Burger ($13) with grilled mushrooms, caramelized onions, lettuce, tomato and garlic mayo, coming with a large side o' fries, a relative bargain in this town ... HOOAH! Her meal was hot, obviously freshly made, and very tasty. The meat looked fresh and the Havarti was real cheese, not the processed cheese-like squares some places serve their customers.

I had a hankerin' for some BBQ, so I asked for the Brisket Plate ($14.50) with 6 ounces of brisket so tender and juicy that you could cut it with a fork, choice of two sides (fries, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, hush puppies, brussel sprouts and bacon, etc. - I had the fries and hush puppies), choice of BBQ sauce, and cornbread and butter. The brisket was scrummy, perfectly cooked and seasoned, and the fries were cut in house and hot and crispy, just like I like them. The brisket rivaled some of the best BBQ I had during our 11 years living in Kansas City, a city where you can find some of the best BBQ in the world. The hush puppies were also very good, crispy outside and soft and moist inside although I could taste neither the bacon nor the jalapeños purportedly contained therein.

The only negatives were minor ones: the temperature inside (could have been 4-5 degrees cooler); the minuscule happy hour drink discount; and the honey for the cornbread we were promised, but which never quite materialized. Those minor infractions were the only things separating this review from a perfect rating, a rating I do not routinely hand out as readily as many other reviewers do. So there ya have it ... good grub!

CombatCritic Gives Shelby's Grille 8 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!