CombatCritic's TravelValue™: old town

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Showing posts with label old town. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 18, 2022

Olhão (Faro), Portugal: Great Atmosphere, Excellent Service, Tasty Food, And Reasonable Prices In Olhão's 'Old Town'

Dona Manela

R. Dr. João Lúcio 8

8700-456 Olhão, Portugal

968 476 784

Facebook: Dona Manela Restaurante

Prices: €€€€

I had no idea this restaurant had opened seven months ago and we live just a few blocks away, so that should tell you how much I have been getting out lately!

The restaurant is modern, bright and cheery, on a back street in the middle of Olhão's "Old Town", so we decided to give them a try and I am glad we did ... HOOAH!

The nice young lady who greeted and seated us was also our server, Amanda, and she did an outstanding job. Her English was good and she was very attentive, helping us navigate the menu.

We started with a nice vinho Duoro (tinto - red, finishing with another, and Couvert for four (bread, olives, seafood pâté, and olive oil and balsamic vinegar. They were all delicious!

I ordered the Picadinho à Manela (€14), strips of chicken breast and cleaned prawns in a curry cream sauce, a large portion coming with two sides (house made chips, salad, or rice) and it was absolutely superb.

My wife had the Chicken (breast) Stroganoff (€11), my buddy Joe ordered the Sautéed Vegetables with Quinoa (€11), and his lady friend Maria got the Pepper Steak (€14.50), all coming with two sides as well. Everyone raved about the food and service, except for my wife who rightly complained that the stroganoff was a bit too salty. With the bill coming to €90 for the four of us, it was a pretty good deal considering the quality of the food and portion sizes as well as two bottles of wine we lapped up ... A DEFINITE "TravelValue"!

We will return again soon and I will include some photos because the ones I took mysteriously vanished from my Gallery ... OOPS!

CombatCritic Gives Dona Manela 9 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

Nine Bombs Equates To:

Translation for Civilians: "U.S. Marine Response To A Verbal Greeting Or As An Expression Of Enthusiasm"

Tuesday, September 10, 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!

Monday, July 20, 2015

Andre's "Cozy B&B" (Airbnb) ... Close To Center, Port, Stations, and Restaurants

Andre's "Cozy B&B" (Airbnb)
Near Malaga's Main Train/Bus Station
Malaga, Andalucia, Spain
Prices: € € € €

Close to the main train and bus stations, and just a 15 minute walk from Old Town Malaga and the port, this accommodation was "as advertised". Andre, short for Andreina, was very welcoming, friendly, and helpful, explaining about the apartment, breakfast, and her three simple rules when I arrived.

The room I stayed in was very small with hardly enough room to pass the bed to get to the window, but it had everything I needed (comfortable double bed, wardrobe, TV, fast wi-fi, ceiling fan) for my short stay of two nights.

The apartment itself is small, but has everything needed. Breakfast is included (make it yourself) and Andre had a nice selection of coffee, teas, and light breakfast options as well as unlimited access to the kitchen and refrigerator. The single bathroom (for two guest rooms) is also small, but the shower is large with plenty of hot water and shampoo, towels, soaps, even sunscreen were provided. If you plan on going to the beach, pack your own towel as Andre does not want her towels leaving the apartment.

In all, for $30 per night (including Airbnb fees), the room was a very good value and I would recommend staying with Andre if looking for an inexpensive option in the heart of Malaga.

CombatCritic Gives Andre's "Cozy B&B" 7 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Are Better!

Title: Andre's "Cozy B&B" (Airbnb)

Key Words: Airbnb, cozy, B&B, room, apartment, Malaga, Andalucia, Spain, downtown, old town, old, town, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, food, definitive, review, guide

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Vancouver, WA: No Veal, No Deal – Olive Garden Delivers Mediocrity with a Side of Sticker Shock