Portland, OR: Papa Mia, That's One Expensive Slice Of Cake!

Papa Haydn

701 NW 23rd Avenue

Portland, OR 97210

Alphabet District, Northwest

Phone number (503) 228-7317

Website: papahaydn.com

Prices: $$$$

A purveyor of sweets and a Portland institution, I had to take my wife and lover of anything sweet to Papa Haydn if for nothing more than to let her feast her eyes on the dessert display case. 

It just so happens that it was Happy Hour after an afternoon trip to the majestic and historic Pittock Mansion not far away, so I ordered a couple of IPAs ($4.75 - Happy Hour) to satisfy the server's requirement of ordering two drinks in order to get Happy Hour pricing on menu items. It seemed a bit gauche to force the issue verbally, insisting on the drink order minimum before we could order from the menu, but c'est la vie. We sat on the 23rd Avenue sidewalk and watched as beautiful people and animals pranced by.

Kimchi Fries

We had a sampling from the menu, starting with Kimchi Fries ($4.50) - hand cut fries with grilled kimchi, thai basil, cilantro and korean aioli ($4.50), Croque Monsieur ($7.75) - ham and aged gruyere on parmesan butter crust, and Croque Madame ($7.75) - turkey breast and aged gruyere on parmesan butter crust.

Croque Monsieur

The fries were plentiful, hot and savory, the best value of the bunch. My wife and I reversed roles, she having the croque monsieur (literally "Mister Crunch") and me the croque madame ("Mrs. Crunch"). Both sandwiches were large with three portions dipped in "Good To Go" egg batter and deep fried ala Monte Cristo, but without the powdered sugar. We shared, giving one of the three portions to the other so that we could taste everything. The croques were delicious although a bit expensive for a simple sandwich on a Happy Hour menu with no accompaniments. 

Croque Madame

The service was good and the ambience decent, it is not Paris after all, so for a little under $30 plus tip we had a streetside table and were well satiated. Not the best Happy Hour I have experienced since moving to Portland, we may return although to nearly $10 price tag for a slice of cake (or other dessert) seems a bit extreme. The croques were very heavy, so we did not have room for sweets on this visit. Maybe we will focus our attention, funds, and taste buds strictly on their wonderful, expensive desserts next time.

CombatCritic Gives Papa Haydn 6 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

Six Bombs Equates To:

Read Reviews By CombatCritic:

Yelp - Elite '14/'15/'16/'17 - 650,000+ Views A Year

Tabelog - Official Judge (Silver)

Zomato - #1 Ranked "Verified" Foodie - Over  1,890,733 Review And Photo Views

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Read Chris S.'s review of Papa Haydn on Yelp

Title: Portland, OR: Papa Mia, That's One Expensive Slice Of Cake!

Key Words: Papa Haydn, papa, haydn, Portland, Oregon, dessert. cake, pastries, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, business, review, Yelp, Zomato

Translation for Civilians: "Good To Go"

Copyright 2018 - 3rd Wave Media Group, LLC and CombatCritic - All Rights Reserved

Lawrence, KS: Better Ingredients, Better Pizza, Crappy Attitude ... Papa John's

Papa John’s Pizza

918 Mississippi Street

Lawrence, KS 66044

Phone number: (785) 865-5775

Website: papajohns.com

Prices: $$$$

There are no photos, sorry, you know what Papa John's and their pizzas look like and this review has nothing to do with pizza. 

If Nathan, the manager, is any indication of quality at this location, they are in deep kimchi and their far less than "stellar" 2.5/5 rating on Yelp seems to indicate that fact. If I were the owner of this location, I would be very, very concerned, but then again, they churn out pizzas for KU's famished and undiscerning student body whether or not their quality standards and customer service are terrible, which they are.

This was the second time we have ordered online for pickup at this location and it will be the last. Their website sucks. They text me their "specials" EVERY FRIDAY, but I usually delete them and wish I had this time as well. I followed the link, chose the crust, size, sauce, and toppings for each pizza, only to be told, after going through this with two pizzas, that the promo code (PJ40) they texted me was "INVALID". I tried again and received the same message, so I went to their "Specials" page where I found a two topping extra large (16") pizza at $9.99 each ... BINGO! But when I clicked on the link that came up advertising that special, I was told "this page doesn't exist", so I tried again with the same absurd outcome.

I finally ordered a couple large pizzas for pickup because by this time we were famished and went to the store with order in hand. I tried to tell Nathan, the manager, about the difficulties that I had with the website and ordering what we wanted, but he refused to listen to what I was saying, insisting that I had received the "PJ40" promo code discount when, in-fact, I had ordered the large (14") two topping pizza specials ($7.99 each). I continued to try to explain the situation and the problems I had with the website, but Nathan obviously was not listening ... "uh huh, yea, uh huh", so I said "you really don't give a shit do you?". He told me there was a Help Line I could call if I was not happy, pointing to a decal on the side of the pizza display case.

Then, when he went to retrieve my order, even though I had arrived 30 minutes after ordering (the email I received said they would be ready in 15-25 minutes), our pizzas had not even been made yet. He lied, telling me they were in the oven, then ignored me other than telling me to "get out of the way" when the next customer arrived. Seriously? Get out of the way? Is that any way to talk to a customer? You know the answer to that question. After another 10-12 minutes, our pizzas were finally ready and I departed, giving Nathan my card and telling him to read my review on my popular blog and on Yelp.

The taste or quality of the pizza is irrelevant at this point, being the same mass produced pies you can get at any Papa John's in the U.S.A. It is the nerve and unprofessionalism I have now experienced on two occasions at this same location and from the same person if I am not mistaken. Nathan should be counseled and put on double secret probation if not fired. He gives this location specifically and Papa John's in general a bad name, leaving a bad taste in my mouth ... literally.

CombatCritic Gives Papa John's And Nathan The Manager 1 Bomb Out Of 10 And A Spot On My "WALL OF SHAME" ... More Bombs Are Better!

One Bomb Equates To:

Read Reviews By CombatCritic:

Yelp - Elite '14/'15/'16/'17 - 650,000+ Views A Year

Tabelog - Official Judge (Silver)

Zomato - #1 Ranked "Verified" Foodie - Over  1,890,733 Review And Photo Views

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Read Chris S.'s review of Papa John's Pizza on Yelp

Title: Lawrence, KS: Better Ingredients, Better Pizza, Crappy Attitude ... Papa John's

Key Words: Lawrence, KS, Better Ingredients, Better Pizza, Papa John's, papa, John's, John, pizza, Mississippi, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, review, Yelp, Zomato

Translation for Civilians: FUBAR = "Fucked Up Beyond All Repair"

Lawrence, Kansas: Order Mistakes Are Par For The Course At This Papa John's

Papa John’s Pizza
918 Mississippi Street
Lawrence, KS 66044
Phone: (785) 865-5775
Website: papajohns.com
Prices: $$$$

After reading the reviews for this Papa John's, I should have anticipated problems. No wonder they are averaging less than 2.5 stars out of 5 on yelp. 

I ordered the two large one-topping pizza special ($15.95) online for pick-up at 5:30pm sharp, one with extra cheese and one with extra cheese and NO SAUCE. My wife is allergic to tomatoes, so in the "comments" section for that particular pizza, I told them "no tomatoes, olive oil ok, tomato allergy". I added no comments when completing selection of ingredients for the other pizza, only choosing "extra cheese" for the whole pie. I left the "instructions" section for the entire order (last step) blank as well.

When I arrived promptly at 5:30, the person behind the counter, obviously the manager or owner, read my order back to me after asking my name: "two large pizzas, extra cheese, no sauce" he said. "No", I said, "my order was only for one pizza with no sauce, I was very specific when I ordered, the other pizza was a normal pizza with sauce and extra cheese".

Instead of saying "I'm sorry for our mistake", I was told that it would be another seven minutes to fix the order and prepare a pizza as I had ordered and that I should have a seat. The reason I ordered ahead online for pick-up at a specific time was to avoid waiting, but because of their mistake, I was forced to wait. It took longer than seven minutes as I suspected (the pizza may take seven minutes to bake, but it was another 3-5 minutes before an employee was able to actually assemble the pizza and put it in the oven), closer to 10-12 minutes.

The same guy who took the order brought the pizzas over to me, one with sauce and one without, just as I had originally ordered. Again, no "sorry you had to wait" or any other sign of remorse. As a former owner of a retail food business, I would have offered a customer in my position something to drink, possibly the extra "white" pizza that had mistakenly been made and they could not sell to someone else, or a even a free dessert, but none of that happened.

When I got the pizzas home, my pizza (with sauce) was relatively hot, but my wife's pizza (the one without sauce that had been sitting there 10-12 minutes while my pizza was being remade) was ice cold. I had to fire up the oven, wait 10 minutes for it to reach 375 degrees, then re-bake the pizza for 7-8 minutes until it reached proper temperature. In total, Papa John's mistake cost us an additional 30 minutes of wasted time. Unsat.

The pizzas were "OK", my wife's a bit dry after all the baking and mine with too much sauce. I cannot imagine paying $17, the going rate for a 14" (large) pizza off the menu, for a Papa John's pizza and the two pizzas we received were not much of a bargain at two for $17 and change (including tax). Unfortunately, pizza in Lawrence is either terrible or overpriced, so we do not have many choices when craving a pie and this Papa John's will not be one of those choices from now on.

CombatCritic Gives Papa John's (9th and Mississippi) 3 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

Three Bombs Equates To:

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Yelp - Elite '14/'15/'16

TripAdvisor - Top Contributor

Tabelog - Official Judge (Bronze)

Zomato - #1 Ranked Foodie





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Read Chris S.'s review of Papa John's Pizza on Yelp

Title: Order Mistakes Are Par For The Course At This Papa John's

Key Words: Papa John's, papa, john's, john, pizza, pizzeria, delivery, carry out, Lawrence, Kansas, Mississippi, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, menu, review, Yelp, TripAdvisor, Zomato, 

Translation for Civilians: SNAFU = "Situation Normal, All Fucked Up"

Papa KENO'S Is A GAMBLE When It Comes To Timely Delivery And Customer Service

My son ordered over the phone because we could find no way to order online as advertised on their Yelp page but the employee told him "we'll have it out when we have it out". We live just 3 blocks away, but after 45 minutes there was still no sign of our pizza. It finally arrived nearly an hour after we placed our order, so I guess the guy on the phone was right after all.

Poor customer service aside, the pizza, although not cheap at $18 for a one-topping 18 inch cheese pizza, was not bad. We had the salami pizza and two order of breadsticks and the tab came to a little over $31 before tip. Not cheap. As far as I could tell, they do not offer specials online so what you see is what you get.

Decent pizza, not so decent value, and poor customer service means ...

CombatCritic Gives Papa Keno's (Lawrence) Only 4 Bombs Out of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

Key Words: Papa Keno's, papa, keno's, keno, pizza, parlor, food, Italian, menu, review, Lawrence, Kansas, Massachusetts, street, downtown, delivery, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value