CombatCritic's TravelValue™: Oahu

Showing posts with label Oahu. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 6, 2019

Kailua (Oahu), Hawaii: Pho-Get-About-It Bruddah, Dis Place Is Da BOMB!

Saigon Noodle House

1020 Keolu Drive, Suite C1

Kailua, HI 96734

Phone number (808) 261-2466

Prices: $$$$

Pho-get-about-it bruddah, dis place is da BOMB! Simple, yet complex, I wish we had a Saigon Noodle House near our home in Portland, Oregon.

They have great deep fried Vietnamese Chicken Spring Rolls ($8.50), four big ones cut in half and served with lettuce wraps, vermicelli noodles, carrot and cucumber, fresh cilantro and mint, and a nice, sweet vinegar based dipping sauce. I love these things ... HOOAH!

The place ain't much to look at, but the service, food and prices are incredible, especially in Oahu. In a strip mall full of restaurants without their own toilets, we had two great meals in a period of three days just 100 feet apart, one Greek and one Vietnamese. You can order at the register and take food home or sit at one of the unassuming tables of which there are six to eight and have your order taken. We went for the latter.

If you have not had Vietnamese spring rolls wrapped in lettuce and dipped in the simple sauce, you have not lived. Fortunately for us, that was just the start. My wife had the Lemongrass Chicken Bánh Mì ($6.99), a French baguette with lemongrass chicken, cucumber, carrots, and cilantro, then sprinkled with their signature soy sauce. She was very happy. I, on the other hand, love Beef Curry ($10.95) and their's was one of the top two Vietnamese curries I have had, the other being a red beef curry 38 years ago in San Pedro, California. Lots of thin beef strips, sliced yellow onion, and fresh basil in a delicious yellow curry sauce that was not too mild and not too hot for my delicate esophagus. It sat atop a pile o' jasmine rice, too much for me to eat, so I ended up leaving half of the rice. Too bigga eat!

For less than $30 plus tip, we had a wonderful Vietnamese meal, one of the best I have had in my lifetime. I wish there were a Saigon Noodle House near us because we would probably be eating there on a weekly basis. I guess we will have to wait until we are back in Kailua visiting our dear friends, hopefully in the near future.

CombatCritic Gives Saigon Noodle House 10 Bombs Out Of 10 And A Spot On MY "WALL OF FAME" ... More Bombs Are Better!

Ten Bombs Equates To:

Translation for Civilians:

HOOAH!: "Phonetic spelling of the acronym HUA, which stands for 'Heard Understood Acknowledged.' Originally used by the British in the late 1800's in Afghanistan. More recently adopted by the United States Army to indicate an affirmative or a pleased response." - Urban Dictionary

"The Department of Military Science and Leadership, University of Tennessee claim HOOAH 'refers to or means anything except no' ... Regardless of its meaning ... the term is an expression of high morale, confidence, motivation and spirit." - WarChronicle.com

"The U.S. Air Force stole 'HOOAH' from the Army because we were part of the Army until 1947 and rather than waste a bunch of time coming up with something new and unique like "ROO-YAH" or "HAL-A-LOO-YAH", we said 'screw it, let's go with HOOAH' ... thanks Army ... HOOAH!" - CombatCritic

Saturday, March 2, 2019

Laie (Oahu), Hawaii: Polynesian Cultural Center - Great Experience, Even Greater Prices

Polynesian Cultural Center

55-370 Kamehameha Highway

Laie, HI 96762

Phone number (808) 293-3333

Business websitepolynesia.com

Prices: $$$$

Phenomenal experience, even more phenomenal prices. The cheapest package, including park entry, dinner, and the big show is $90 per person with some packages exceeding $250 per person. Being a military retiree, we got a pretty good deal through ITT (MWR/Tickets and Tours), so I cannot complain too much. We had the self guided tour of the park and its Polynesian Villages, a 6:30pm luau dinner, and the big show at 7:30pm, all for just $71.50 each.

The villages are interesting, but they focus too much on music and dance shows instead of observing daily life in the islands as I had expected. You have to schedule your day fairly rigorously if you hope to get as much in as possible between opening at 11:45am and the luau at 6:30pm. We did not see everything, but you can return to the villages for FREE within 3 days of first entry.

The luau had your basic luau fare - roast pig, chicken, teriyaki beef, raw fish, rice, poi, salads, etc. - with free soft drinks and dessert along with hula, fire dancing, and Polynesian music and singing. The food was unspectacular and I was sick to my stomach for the nest day and a half, but I cannot attribute that to the luau food for sure. The luau show was adequate, but not much different than the big show immediately following.

The big show was well done, following the story of a man from birth through his own son's young adulthood. More music, dancing and singing ensued with fire dancing and twirling, etc., etc. It lasted about an hour and 15 minutes.

In all, it was a nice day, but I am not sure that it was worth $143 for the two of us much less $500+. This place is raking in the bucks, but it all supports a good cause, the nearby Mormon university as the place is run 100% by the Mormon Church.

I base my score on the overall value of the experience as compared to the prices they charge. Everything in Hawaii is ridiculously expensive and luaus alone go for $65 per person and up, so we definitely got a good deal. However, I am basing my score on the average that the general public pays which is probably closer to $125+ a pop, making it NOT a great TravelValue in my eyes. Therefore, ...

CombatCritic Gives The Polynesian Cultural Center 5 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

Five Bombs Equates To:

Translation for Civilians: "Continue Mission"

Thursday, February 28, 2019

Kialua (Oahu), Hawaii: Yamas Is All Greek To Me, But I liked it!

Yamas Mediterranean Cuisine
1020 Keolu Drive
Kailua, HI 96734
Phone number (808) 263-4075
Website: yamaskailua.com
Prices: $$$$

Good, fresh food and reasonable prices, but a bit heavy on the garlic, even for me. We ordered the baba ganoush ($7) with extra pita and it was OK, but the garlic overpowered the appetizer.

The service was good even though they got hit with several tables (one six-top and one eight-top) all at once. The tables are all too small, so our party of four felt a bit claustrophobic at a table that would comfortably fit two, maybe three tops. We had to continually maneuver menus, bread plates, water glasses, and meals around to make everything fit and it was tiresome.

The strangest thing was that they do not have a bathroom, so women must use a key to access a public toilet about 100 feet away and men have to go across the parking lot to McDonalds. I did not need to use it, but hopefully you do not need to make a purchase to get the bathroom door code as is the case at McDonalds in many tourist areas.

I had the Gyro ($12), a lamb/beef combo on a soft, warm pita with tzatziki (yogurt and cucumber sauce), lettuce, sliced onion, and tomato. It came with a choice of (one) garlic fries, Greek salad, baba ganoush, hummus or a couple other things or you could choose any two of those for another $3, which was what I did. I got a basket of crispy, garlicky fries and a Greek side salad which had much more lettuce and far fewer olives, cucumber, and tomato than any other Greek salad I have had. It was decent, the gyro big and tasty, and the fries excellent. My wife had the Souvlaki, chunks of chicken on a pita with the same ingredients as my gyro, and it was also quite tasty.

For dessert, we decided to try their baklava, coming two big halves on a plate and some of the tastiest I have had. The pastry topping was light and crispy and the sweet filling a perfect blend of nuts, spices, and honey ... HOOAH!

CombatCritic Gives Yamas 8 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

Eight Bombs Equates To:

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

Pages - CombatCritic's "TravelValue"

Follow Me To TravelValue!

Vancouver, WA: Operation Schnitzel: Gustav’s Remains a Trusted Rally Point