Xlendi, Gozo (Malta): A "Diamond" In The Rough Waters Of Xlendi Bay

The Diamond
16 Triq Sant Andrija Xlendi
Xlendi, Island of Gozo, Malta
Phone: +356 7904 1812
Website:  https://www.thediamondxlendi.co.uk/
Prices: €€€€

With unusually rough Mediterranean seas during our stay in Xlendi due to high winds, The Diamond was a calming influence. A simple, yet efficient little pub/restaurant not visible to the eye from the main square of Xlendi, you must head down the street to your right (looking toward the bay from the plaza), turn to your right at the end of the block and look to your right. There you will see The Diamond, if you look hard, with the black and white sign and barely wider than the double doors in the front.

Inside it gets a tad wider, but not much, toward the back. There are only about six tables, so hope it is not a busy night. The owner, Robin, is from Newcastle upon Tyne, is a friendly lad, and efficient as well. He runs the front and Diane, who may be his spouse, runs the kitchen.

There is no draught beer, so you will have to settle for a bottle or can and a glass. I had a John Smith's (€3.50) and a local pale ale called Hopleaf (€2.50) and we shared a bottle of sparkling water (€3). 

The menu is simple (see below) with typical pub fare, including and Quiche Lorraine (€6.50) and Fish and Chips (€10), which my wife and I ordered. They also have steak and Guinness pie (among others), jacket potatoes, burgers, sandwiches and other very reasonably priced menu items with my fish and chips being the most expensive item on the menu.

My wife's cheese and onion quiche was a bit on the tiny side, but quite savory and tasty, coming with a small side of chips (fries to you Yanks) and an equally small side salad. Not bad for the price actually.

My fish and chips were delicious with fresh, flaky cod (I think) and a light, crispy batter. In fact, both the fish and the batter were so light and flaky that it was difficult to eat with a fork. It came with hot, crisp chips, mushy peas, a small portion of tartar sauce, and a slice of white bread and butter. The only downside was the size of the portion of fish, being much smaller than you would find at any "chippy" in the U.K., but not a bad value for the price.

It was a nice, light meal after some rather robust Maltese feasts we had had lately and at €25.50 plus tip, one of the cheaper meals we had in Malta and a great value.

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

Eight Bombs Equates To:

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

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Menu

Title: Xlendi, Gozo (Malta): A "Diamond" In The Rough Waters Of Xlendi Bay

Key Words: Xlendi, Gozo, Malta, The Diamond, the, diamond, pub, fish and chips, fish, chips, beer, ale, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, review, Yelp

Copyright 2017/2018 - 3rd Wave Media Group, LLC and CombatCritic - All Rights Reserved

Sherwood, OR: Pizza Schmizza - The Only Good Thing About This Place Is The Beer

Schmizza Public House

15982 SW Tualatin Sherwood Road

Sherwood, OR 97140

Phone number: (503) 925-8093

Website: schmizzapublichouse.com

Prices: $$$$

Not good. We filled our pie holes and left satiated, but otherwise it was a very forgetful experience.

The place is not inviting, bright and laid out in a strangely open arrangement with relatively few tables. They were playing a trivia game when we entered and received many strange looks, as if we were somehow not welcome. We gave a hint (the answer) to the metrosexuals next to us for an opera question they obviously had no clue how to respond to, the answer to which was "Carmen". They basically ignored us, looking like they had never been to an opera in their lives, but celebrated gleefully when they found out that their (our) answer was correct. Grow a pair girls and thank your knowledgable and compassionate neighbors for your victory. Anyway, ...

My wife had another unimpressive $14 Mac and Cheese, boring and severely overpriced, and I the Tuesday Street Tacos Special ($11). The mac and cheese was flanked by two pieces of garlic toast, adding a little flavor to the otherwise tasteless dish. The tacos (shredded beef) were attractive to the eye, but mediocre to the palate with little beef, more lettuce, a dusting of cheese, and a very thin slice of avocado (great idea, sad execution). The cheap tortilla chips on the side were straight out of the bag and disgusting.

The best value of the night was the cold pint of IPA ($5), so go for a beer and head down the street to the OSF for lots o' pasta.

CombatCritic Gives Schmizza Public House 4 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

Four Bombs Equates To:

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Title: Sherwood, OR: Pizza Schmizza - The Only Good Thing About This Place Is The Beer

Key Words: Schmizza, pizza, Sherwood, Oregon, beer, pub, public, house, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, business, review, Yelp, Zomato

Translation for Civilians: "Bend Over, Here It Comes Again"

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

Eureka, CA: The Potatoes Weren't The Only Thing Stuf't By The End Of The Night

Stuf't Potato
3220 South Broadway, Suite 8
Eureka, CA 95501
Phone number (707) 444-6200
Website: stuftpotato.com
Prices: $$$$

The restaurant is simple, a nice little place in a strip mall near the southern edge of town. The service is friendly and efficient, and the food made to order. The chef readily agreed to substitute chicken with pork for the schnitzel cordon bleu ($17.95), but they would have received 7-8 Bombs Out Of 10 had they fulfilled my request for a little Hunter sauce (gravy) with the cordon bleu I ordered. When a customer makes a request, it should be fulfilled. It's not that hard to whip up a little gravy, particularly when you are pan frying the schnitzel anyway.

My wife had the Fried Spätzel ($13.95), a huge skillet full of spätzel, ham, Gruyere cheese, saüerkraut, and fried onions all mixed together. It was a lot of food, very unique, and quite good. Fresh bread and a cream cheese spread with spices accompanied the meals.

As I mentioned, I had the schnitzel (pork) cordon bleu with fried potatoes and sweet and sour red cabbage. The dinner came with soup or salad and bread, so I ordered the beef goulash soup which was a bit greasy, as it should be, but good. The potatoes were good, the cabbage OK (I'm not a huge fan of German red cabbage), and the cordon bleu very well prepared except for the fact that it was extremely dry. A little hunter sauce (mushroom gravy) would have rounded out the dish quite nicely, but it was not meant to be.

The beer comes in bottles, nothing on tap, and is a bit pricy ($5.25-$5.95) for a 12-16 ounce bottle of beer. The house wine is $5.25 a glass and the glass was quite generous, a much better value than the beer. We enjoyed our meal and the chef obviously knows how to prepare German food, but a little more flexibility, not an easy thing for many Germans (I'm half German, so I know all too well), would have gone a long way.

CombatCritic Gives Stuft Potato 6 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

Six Bombs Equates To:

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Read Chris S.'s review of Stuft Potato on Yelp

Title: Eureka, CA: The Potatoes Weren't The Only Thing Stuf't By The End Of The Night

Key Words: Stuf't Potato, stuf't, stuffed, potato, potatoes, German, schnitzel, Eureka, California, beer, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, business, review, Yelp, Zomato

Translation for Civilians: G2G = "Good To Go"

Portland, OR: The Jury's Still Out As To Whether Or Not I Become A "Regular"

Stammtisch (German, Gastropub)

401 NE 28th Avenue

Portland, OR 97232

Northeast Portland, Kerns

Phone number: (503) 206-7983

Website: stammtischpdx.com

Prices: $$$$

Not quite what I expected, having spent quite a bit of time in Germany and with a name like Stammtisch (German: a table reserved for "regulars"). More of an American bar/pub look than a German gasthaus, they do have some larger community-style tables you would see in Munich and other places in Germany, but that was about it.

They have a nice selection of German beers on tap at fairly reasonable prices ($5-$7 for 0.5 liter). I usually order my go-to, Warsteiner Dunkel, but decided on the Weltenburger Barock Dunkel instead, a dark, robust beer that was quite tasty.

The menu is not big, but that is usually a good thing because ingredients are normally fresher. Their plates come in "Kleine" (small - $4-$9), "Mittel" (middle or medium -  $10-$16) and "Grosse" (big or large - $12-$23) with a nice selection of six or seven choices in each size class.

My wife would have gone with the Bretzel (pretzel - $5) as a starter, but because I left her in Kansas, I ordered the Currywurst ($6), a sliced pork and veal sausage with fries and house curry ketchup in a small cardboard bowl (which I found a bit odd). What the dish lacked in presentation, it made up for in flavor and was quite tasty although not quite hot enough.

Their entrees include the classics: Sauerbraten ($19), Wienerschnitzel ($15), and, of course, my favorite, Jägerschnitzel ($16) which I ordered. The seared pork loin was medium in size (small by German standards) and the mushroom gravy (Hunter's sauce) had all of two button mushrooms on top. The cutlet was served on top of the spätzle and red cabbage that accompanied it, not my preferred serving method. I love both spätzle and German red cabbage, but Jägerschnitzel should never sit on top of such an acidic and colorful side dish as red cabbage in my opinion. Spätzle? Maybe. Red cabbage? Absolutely not! I have had all types of schnitzels in Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, and Bosnia-Herzogovina (as well as the U.S. and India believe it or not) and it was never served on top of anything. In fact, in many places the sides (spätzel, potatoes, vegetables) are routinely served family style in separate serving dishes, so the only thing on the plate is usually the schnitzel and it is normally massive.

The server was friendly and efficient although he never told me his name. I asked him about the size of the portions in order to determine whether or not I should order the currywurst and the Jägerschnitzel and after telling me, I decided to order the currywurst. My beer had arrived in the meantime and I was in no hurry to go back to an empty house, so I savored the brew and starter, planning on ordering another beer when he took my entree order. Next thing I knew, the Jägerschnitzel arrived much to my surprise. He must have misunderstood my intentions, but fortunately I would have ordered it anyway and had not changed my mind in the interim. I did not need the second beer anyway.

Parking is on the street only and a challenge to find a spot anywhere close, particularly for a disabled person/veteran. The currywurst could have been served in a proper dish or bowl, not something taquitos come in at a little league game. The jägerschnitzel should not have been "assumed" and absolutely NOT placed on top of the red cabbage. A small German salad and some pumpernickel would have also been a nice accompaniment to a $16-$23 dinner  Finally, a little German ambience would lend itself well to the surroundings, but overall it was a decent, pleasant dinner.

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

Six Bombs Equates To:

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Read Chris S.'s review of Stammtisch on Yelp

Title: Portland, OR: The Jury's Still Out As To Whether Or Not I Become A "Regular"

Key Words: Stammtisch, German, Germany, gasthaus, schnitzel, Portland, Oregon, Vancouver, beer, bier, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, review, Yelp, Zomato, Tabelog

Translation for Civilians: G2G = "Good To Go"

Matera: Is It Italian? Is It American? It's Pub "14th" And Yummy Burgers!

14th
Via XX Settembre 14
75100 Matera, Italy
Phone number: +39 329 5974869
Prices: €€€€

It was a cold night, snow falling and wind howling when we found ourselves in an alley across from San Francesco di Paola church in Matera's town center not far from their famous Sassi and UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was the most snow (2+ feet) Matera had since 1956, 60 years ago and most restaurants in town were closed for the holiday (Befana) weekend. To find 14th, enter the alley and follow the signs toward Pizzeria Da Mario, but instead of turning right, turn left and 14th will be the last place on the right ... burgers, sandwiches, cheap beer, friendly service and more. You will not find it otherwise.

A large cavernous place, they have wooden booths, tables and chairs downstairs near the bar and more tables up in the loft that has been erected in the center of the room. They serve mostly hamburgers and sandwiches and a decent selection of tap and bottled beers as well as wine and spirits.

I ordered a 1/2 litre Edinger Hefeweizen (€5) and a Classic Burger (€8) with a thick 1/3 pound beef patty, cheese, caramelized onion, bacon, lettuce. tomato and BBQ sauce (I sub'ed mayo for the BBQ sauce) on a big homemade sesame seed bun and accompanied by handcut fries. The beer was cold with a frothy head and the burger, amazingly enough, excellent even though the bacon was more like ham due to the fact that American-style bacon is relatively unknown and unavailable in Italy.

My wife had a ham, cheese, and mushroom "Club" panino (€7 - "panini", commonly used as singular in the US, is actually plural in Italy, meaning two or more), also accompanied by fries. The sandwich was massive with three thin slices of white toast layered with mushrooms and cheese on one and ham and cheese on the other, then toasted in a sandwich press. The sandwich and fries were good, but both could have been warmer. probably having sat waiting for the two busy servers that were obviously not expecting such a large crowd on a Sunday night after a holiday.

The servers were friendly, but, overwhelmed by the unexpectedly large crowd, service was rather slow. We waited over 30 minutes for our orders while the couple that entered just before us (and told us about the existence of the pub) received their food less than 10 minutes after ordering.

CombatCritic Gives 14th 7 Bombs Out Of 10 With Deductions For Slow Service Untraditional Bacon, And A Lukewarm Sandwich ... More Bombs Are Better!

Seven Bombs Equates To:

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Read Chris S.'s review of 14th on Yelp

Title: Matera, Italy: Is It Italian? Is It American? It's Pub "14th" And Yummy Burgers!

Key Words: 14, 14th, Matera, Basilicata, Italy, pub, bar, hamburger, food, beer, sassi, Sassi di Matera, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, review, Yelp

Translation for Civilians: S&G = "Shits & Grins"

Matera, Italy: Is It Italian? Is It American? It's Pub "14th" And Yummy Burgers!

14th
Via XX Settembre 14
75100 Matera, Italy
Phone number: +39 329 5974869
Prices: €€€€

It was a cold night, snow falling and wind howling when we found ourselves in an alley across from San Francesco di Paola church in Matera's town center not far from their famous Sassi and UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was the most snow (2+ feet) Matera had since 1956, 60 years ago and most restaurants in town were closed for the holiday (Befana) weekend. To find 14th, enter the alley and follow the signs toward Pizzeria Da Mario, but instead of turning right, turn left and 14th will be the last place on the right ... burgers, sandwiches, cheap beer, friendly service and more. You will not find it otherwise.

A large cavernous place, they have wooden booths, tables and chairs downstairs near the bar and more tables up in the loft that has been erected in the center of the room. They serve mostly hamburgers and sandwiches and a decent selection of tap and bottled beers as well as wine and spirits.

I ordered a 1/2 litre Edinger Hefeweizen (€5) and a Classic Burger (€8) with a thick 1/3 pound beef patty, cheese, caramelized onion, bacon, lettuce. tomato and BBQ sauce (I sub'ed mayo for the BBQ sauce) on a big homemade sesame seed bun and accompanied by handcut fries. The beer was cold with a frothy head and the burger, amazingly enough, excellent even though the bacon was more like ham due to the fact that American-style bacon is relatively unknown and unavailable in Italy.

My wife had a ham, cheese, and mushroom "Club" panino (€7 - "panini", commonly used as singular in the US, is actually plural in Italy, meaning two or more), also accompanied by fries. The sandwich was massive with three thin slices of white toast layered with mushrooms and cheese on one and ham and cheese on the other, then toasted in a sandwich press. The sandwich and fries were good, but both could have been warmer. probably having sat waiting for the two busy servers that were obviously not expecting such a large crowd on a Sunday night after a holiday.

The servers were friendly, but, overwhelmed by the unexpectedly large crowd, service was rather slow. We waited over 30 minutes for our orders while the couple that entered just before us (and told us about the existence of the pub) received their food less than 10 minutes after ordering.

CombatCritic Gives 14th 7 Bombs Out Of 10 With Deductions For Slow Service Untraditional Bacon, And A Lukewarm Sandwich ... More Bombs Are Better!

Seven Bombs Equates To:

Read Reviews By CombatCritic:

Yelp - Elite '14/'15/'16/'17

Tabelog - Official Judge (Silver)

Zomato - #1 Ranked "Verified" Foodie





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Read Chris S.'s review of 14th on Yelp

Title: Matera, Italy: Is It Italian? Is It American? It's Pub "14th" And Yummy Burgers!

Key Words: 14, 14th, Matera, Basilicata, Italy, pub, bar, hamburger, food, beer, sassi, Sassi di Matera, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, review, Yelp

Translation for Civilians: S&G = "Shits & Grins"