The Best Anchorage Restaurants & Nightlife

The Glac­i­er Brew­house is a favorite among locals and vis­i­tors alike. Meals are served in a large rus­tic din­ing area, com­plete with a fire­place in the mid­dle, cre­at­ing a warm and invit­ing atmos­phere that’s always abuzz with con­ver­sa­tion. Here you can enjoy fresh seafood and meats while sam­pling a spec­trum of home­made beers. Before or after you meal, be sure to check out the brew­ing equip­ment on dis­play through the glass wall. 

This clas­sic steak­house in down­town Anchor­age has a lot of sto­ries to tell: While the restau­rant start­ed in the 1950s, its home build­ing dates back to the 1920s. Cut and aged on the premis­es, the steaks — some four inch­es thick — have been vot­ed the best in Anchor­age for 12 years run­ning. No sur­prise, though, there is surf as well as turf: the menu fea­tures hal­ibut, scal­lops, prawns and the much-sought-after red king crab.

If the Hotel Cap­tain Cook sits in the heart of Anchorage’s buzzing busi­ness dis­trict — and it does — then this cof­fee bar, right off the lob­by, could be its nerve cen­ter. And while it is unde­ni­ably a con­ve­nient spot to swing by to pick up an espres­so or iced cof­fee, local fans come back because it’s the kind of friend­ly place where the barista remem­bers your name when you order.

At first blush, this tra­di­tion­al down­town restau­rant may seem like just a spe­cial occa­sion place: steaks, lob­ster, oys­ters Rock­e­feller and impec­ca­ble ser­vice. But, its also an Anchor­age main­stay for busi­ness pow­er lunch­es, date nights and even upscale prom nights. They also have one of the best Hap­py Hours in town with drink spe­cials and dis­count­ed appetizers.

This bar was found­ed in 1994 by a few locals who felt that Anchor­age need­ed a real­ly good bar for craft beers. Clear­ly, they were right — both locals and tourists made this place a near-instant institution.

Gin­ger is locat­ed in his­toric down­town Anchor­age, Alas­ka. Open since March of 2007, we spe­cial­ize in Pacif­ic Rim cui­sine and clas­sic Asian spe­cial­ties. Our meals are hand-craft­ed from fresh ingre­di­ents by a devot­ed crew of local restau­rant veterans.

Tequi­la 61° offers a unique fusion of tra­di­tion­al Mex­i­can fla­vors and clas­sic Alaskan ingre­di­ents, blend­ing them into cre­ative dish­es and hand­craft­ed cock­tails that have helped rede­fine the mod­ern Alaskan din­ing expe­ri­ence. The name reflects this dual her­itage: a Latin fusion gas­tro­bar with an address in Anchor­age (at a lat­i­tude of 61 degrees).

Stop in for slices, whole piz­zas, sal­ads, wings and more. Find local craft brews on tap. Dine-in, car­ry-out, or opt for deliv­ery. Locat­ed in the heart of Down­town Anchorage. 

Noth­ing beats a good break­fast to kick off a day of adven­ture in Alas­ka, and accord­ing to locals, noth­ing beats this pop­u­lar down­town café for egg scram­bles, omelets, sal­ads and more. Snow City Café been vot­ed ​“Best Break­fast” by Anchor­age Press read­ers for years, thanks to their from-scratch bak­ery items and cre­ative com­bos, such as eggs bene­dict with sock­eye salmon cakes, or hot oat­meal topped with home­made gra­nola and blue­ber­ries. At lunch,  ...more

Tent City Tap­house is an authen­tic Alaskan gas­trop­ub locat­ed in the heart of Anchor­age. Dis­cov­er deli­cious, local­ly sourced cui­sine and a wide vari­ety of Alaskan beers on tap. Expe­ri­ence the unique blend of Alaskan his­to­ry and mod­ern décor while enjoy­ing a meal with friends and fam­i­ly. Don’t miss out on the chance to learn about Anchor­age’s Tent City his­to­ry and enjoy brunch with a flight of mimosas in four flavors. 

Dine on deli­cious Japan­ese cui­sine pre­pared in the tra­di­tion­al tep­pa­nya­ki style at Beni­hana Anchor­age. Enjoy the com­pa­ny of friends, fam­i­ly, and cowork­ers around com­mu­nal hibachi grill tables and watch the chefs per­form their daz­zling skills as they slice, dice, and cook up excep­tion­al tep­pa­nya­ki cuisine. 

This down­town shop and café is a lit­tle glimpse into old Anchor­age — a city that was­n’t com­plete­ly about log­ging, fish­ing and tough guys. Built in 1915, the Kim­ball build­ing, on Town Square Park at the cor­ner of 5^th and E, is a stop on the his­toric walk­ing tour and still has antique fix­tures and floor­ing. It’s eclec­tic, ​“quaint-meets-cool” gift and tea shop is an exten­sion of a famed dry goods and sewing notions store that has been in business…  ...more

Craft beer, local­ly sourced food, and a ter­rif­ic loca­tion in the heart of down­town Anchor­age all add up to a can’t‑miss expe­ri­ence. Dine inside the two-sto­ry restau­rant, or step upstairs to the rooftop deck for mag­nif­i­cent views of the Alas­ka Range and Cook Inlet.

Locat­ed atop Tow­er 3 of down­town Anchor­age’s Hotel Cap­tain Cook, this AAA-four-dia­mond fine din­ing restau­rant — the only one in Anchor­age — offers a blend of French and New Amer­i­can cuisines, a 10,000-bottle wine cel­lar and stun­ning views of Down­town, Chugach Moun­tains, and Cook Inlet. Dish­es reflect local resources, such as veni­son loin and Bering Sea king crab legs. Hours Mon­day through Sat­ur­day — 5pm-9pm. Prices Entrees range from $29…  ...more

This restau­rant on the main floor of down­town Anchor­age’s Hotel Cap­tain Cook offers gourmet piz­za, fresh pas­ta dish­es and seafood spe­cial­ties in an Eng­lish pub-style set­ting. Named for Fletch­er Chris­t­ian, the man behind the his­toric mutiny on the Boun­ty, the pub also offers local, micro-brewed beers, wines by the glass or cognac. Hours Dai­ly: 11:30am-1am Prices Prices range from $10 to $38.  ...more

Giv­ing fresh Alaskan dish­es a unique touch, Orso serves din­ner in a warm, invit­ing atmos­phere. Clas­sics like grilled wild Alaskan salmon are served with an olive and toma­to sal­sa, while Bering sea scal­lops come with a wal­nut-gor­gonzo­la risot­to. And you don’t want to miss the desserts.

Hand­made pas­tas and deli­cious piz­zas are just the begin­ning of Flattop’s unique menu, which is full of inven­tive options. Set in the heart of Down­town Anchor­age, the restau­rant brings togeth­er high-end cui­sine and an exten­sive wine list and serves it in a casu­al, fam­i­ly-friend­ly atmosphere.

At this hip, invit­ing wine bistro, you can choose from 40 wines by the glass with your lunch or din­ner. Sit and enjoy a glass, or share a bot­tle among friends. 

Anchor­age’s Waf­fles and What­Not is the per­fect des­ti­na­tion for food­ies look­ing for some­thing new and excit­ing. This award-win­ning restau­rant, fea­tured on the Food Net­work and in Entre­pre­neur mag­a­zine, serves up one-of-a-kind waf­fles, made-to-order omelets, and break­fast bur­ri­tos. Veg­an, gluten-free, and Keto options are also available.

Who can’t be tempt­ed by a place that offers a Bacon of the Month? This Anchor­age restau­rant in the heart of the Spe­nard neigh­bor­hood serves con­tem­po­rary com­fort food in a casu­al, eclec­tic set­ting. Year-round, its menu shows a local and some­times whim­si­cal flair: Bacon Jam Burg­er, Rein­deer and Chevre Piz­za, and S’mores for dessert. Veg­e­tar­i­an options abound, as well. The full bar has its own unique flour­ish­es: it fea­tures small batch and single  ...more

Adorned with rich woods and pol­ished brass, the Fan­cy Moose Lounge offers a col­or­ful envi­ron­ment where you can mix good times and bev­er­ages with a spec­tac­u­lar view of the lake. Casu­al din­ing fea­tures fresh seafood, burg­ers, sand­wich­es, sal­ads, soups and fin­ger foods, and an assort­ment of spe­cial­ty drinks. Sum­mer draws locals and vis­i­tors to the out­door patio with the promise of bril­liant Alaskan sun­sets. Oper­at­ing Hours 11:00 AM — 12:00 AM  ...more

The only spe­cial­ty cheese shop in Anchor­age is also a can’t‑miss café. It’s the only place in Anchor­age to pur­chase spe­cial­ty cheeses sourced from across Europe and the U.S. But it’s also a hip, casu­al spot with a great lunch menu that mix­es arti­san cheeses with high-qual­i­ty fast food. Some peo­ple come just for the cookies!

All-nat­ur­al Angus beef burg­ers and hand-cut made to order fries are the high­lights of this nation­al chain with two Anchor­age loca­tions. There are options for veg­ans too! And don’t for­get the frozen cus­tard for dessert.

Enjoy a wide vari­ety of Alaskan beers on tap, as well as deli­cious dish­es baked in a huge stone oven at this fam­i­ly-friend­ly restau­rant in south Anchor­age. Open for lunch and din­ner, Fire­tap Ale­house has a bright, invit­ing atmos­phere, with 6‑seater booths as well as tables that can be pushed togeth­er for large groups. Dur­ing the warmer months, you can also dine out on the deck and take in the view of snow-capped mountains.

Cre­at­ed by the folks behind Anchorage’s award-win­ning Snow City Café, Spe­nard Road­house and Sack’s Café, South Restau­rant + Cof­fee­house was launched to take the best qual­i­ties of those pop­u­lar eater­ies to the South side of town. Locat­ed in a new devel­op­ment near the famed Alas­ka Sand and Grav­el— and off Old Seward High­way — South Restau­rant + Cof­fee House chan­nels a bit of the area’s indus­tri­al past, with a clean, mod­ern space, fea­tur­ing a  ...more

A night at the Sev­en Glac­i­ers restau­rant, perched 2,300 feet above sea lev­el on Mount Alyeska, is a din­ing jour­ney that begins with a tram ride high above the tree­tops, fol­lowed by an ele­va­tor lift, then a stroll along a gold­en car­pet, past a glim­mer­ing, glass-and-steel, wine-tow­er wall and into a din­ing room radi­at­ing the col­ors of alpen­glow and glacial ice. Sev­en Glac­i­ers is one of only three AAA Four Dia­mond restau­rants in Alas­ka. You can  ...more

Just a 45-minute dri­ve from Anchor­age, Raven’s Perch lies with­in the main lodge at the cozy Alas­ka Glac­i­er Lodge, with big win­dows and an out­door deck look­ing out to a spec­tac­u­lar view. The focus here is on local, sus­tain­able ingre­di­ents and prod­ucts. The staff talks with local farm­ers and plans ahead to see what veg­eta­bles are com­ing into sea­son to cre­ate their menus.