Voodoo Donuts

My family returned on Saturday from probably my best vacation ever—five days in Portland, OR with my wife, Pam, and my sons, Reid and Griffin. Oregon is Pam's stomping grounds and I've been there numerous times, but this was the first time for Reid and Griffin which made it very special for me (and them, of course).

Oregon is beautiful with its natural wonders, lush greenery, Pacific Ocean coast and snowy mountains all within a few hours. We toured the Tillamook cheese factory, walked the sand in Pacific City, ate at the Spirit Mountain casino, took in the Oregon Museum of Science & Industry and enjoyed a Thanksgiving meal with Pam's family. Reid and Griffin also snow boarded near Mt. Hood.

We also tried to sample a very unique downtown Portland business called Voodoo Donuts. I say "tried" because we went there on Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. only to find a crowd of 35 people standing in line outside waiting to get in. Yes, a Friday afternoon at 3 p.m! We had somewhere else to be and couldn't wait so I instead got the photo of Griffin in line. He had seen Voodoo Donuts on Man vs. Food and wanted to try its maple bar complete with fried bacon on top. The business has become famous in Portland and beyond for its very large donuts with unusual toppings and fillings. For example, the "Tex-Ass" is glazed and the size of six regular donuts. Anyone who can eat it in 140 seconds or less gets it free. The signature Voodoo is gingerbread man-shaped with a pretzel stick stabbed through its abdomen and red jelly "blood" filling.

Voodoo Donuts is not a chain. It's a six-year-old business that has made food fun and is probably making a "blood" filling killing in profits. With their success downtown, the owners have opened a second store on Portland's east side. They must be on to something. How many business owners would like to have 35 people lined up to get in on a Friday afternoon at 3 p.m.?