Anchorage, being the largest and most cosmopolitan of cities in Alaska, affords the hungry traveler the best gastronomic options in the state, and likely since they departed their home town.
Sushi & Sushi
Sushi & Sushi may have a modest exterior, but don’t let that deter you
Finally, a good sushi place. I’ve been spoiled by Umi in San Francisco (thanks Abdur) and all other places seem to pale in comparison. Sushi & Sushi held its own. I ordered the sushi and sashimi platter, which included 9 pieces of sashimi and 6 of nigiri, all chef’s choice. The fish literally melted in my mouth. For anyone who has tried sushi and not liked it, you need to try it at a place like this. My favorite were the halibut sashimi, which melted like butter, and the squid nigiri, which was not chewy at all. The tuna and salmon were fine, but I was kinda hoping for something more bold (to be honest, I was hoping for uni). Karla who is unable to eat raw fish, ordered veggie and shrimp tempura, which was lightly battery and fried and retained the full taste of the underlying vegetable.
Sushi and sashimi
Shrimp & Vegetable Tempura
I really wanted to return a second time here but we only had so many dinners in Anchorage.
Yak & Yeti Himalayan Restaurant
Yak & Yeti is a family owned restaurant serving a variety of Indian, Tibetan and Nepalese dishes located in downtown Anchorage. We started with an order of samosas, which were nicely crisped on the outside and savory on the inside. The two chutneys served were the standard fare, however the tamarind one was very thin and runny and not even reminiscent of tamarind.
We then ordered the Veg Kofta (an Indian dish that is basically meatless meatballs in an aromatic sauce) and Kalimpong Shapta (a Tibetan dish of spicy pork served with steamed buns). The kofta was excellent, I would order it again in a heartbeat. The Kalimpong Shapta less so, mainly due to the fatty nature of the pork. The flavor profile of the pork was very good, and the steamed buns were a nice contrast to naan and roti. But I just don’t enjoy eating large globules of fat.
I also ordered a side of Indian pickles, which I was very excited about after reading the description that reads “…the best Indian pickle that we’ve ever tasted, made in Pakistan.” Sounds like the perfect recipe for conflicting tastes. Alas, the server forgot to bring the pickles.
Based on exactly one visit, I would heartily recommend ordering vegetarian here while cautiously ordering meat dishes.
Moose’s Tooth Pub & Pizzeria
This place is always packed, and after eating here, rightly so. On our first dining attempt we naively showed up at 6 pm on a Tuesday and couldn’t park within a few blocks of the place, and the line was out the door. Our next attempt fared much better, arriving at the off hour of 2:30 PM on a Thursday to a restaurant that was almost at capacity.
Moose’s Tooth pizza
True to their name they specialize in pizza, offering a myriad of options to please most palates. We ordered two small pizzas to share, a Spicy Thai Chicken (same idea as the one at California Pizza Kitchen) and an Aloha Escape (Hawaiian). The crust was the star here, light and crispy and easily supporting the weight of the toppings without sagging. The price is quite reasonable, especially considering most people (including us) walked out with leftovers for an additional meal. Karla also ordered the cheesecake of the week, which was cheesecake sandwiched between two layers of red velvet cake. She reported the cake part was rather dry, falling short of the standard bearer at Cheesecake Factory.
Flying Dutchman European Pastry Shop
An excellent pastry shop located at the edge of town in an unassuming strip mall. We opted to select just one pasty each as we were headed out for a hike and could not store additional pastries for later consumption. I went for the chocolate croissant (no surprise there) and Karla tried the almond cinnamon roll. The croissant was properly flaky and buttery, clearly baked that morning (a pet peeve of mine is for bakeries that try to foist day old croissants on the unsuspecting). But the chocolate filling was odd. Not bad, just odd. The consistency was almost runny, which I’ve never experienced before. The taste was spot on, so maybe it’s a Dutch thing and I’ve only had French chocolate croissants before? Karla reported her almond cinnamon roll was very tasty and flaky and had a good balance of cinnamon to pastry.
