Talkeetna Dining & Nightlife

Named for the ele­va­tion of near­by Denali, this casu­al restau­rant serves up break­fast, lunch, and din­ner across from the Mt. McKin­ley Princess Lodge. The restau­rant was designed to feed lodge guests, and most enjoy at least one meal inside this large, stand­alone struc­ture of steel and wood. The food is vin­tage Princess, includ­ing fresh seafood and pub fare with house-made sauces and fresh sides.

Cof­fee and ice cream made with milk from Alas­ka cows; that’s why to come to this caf? with pic­nic tables. Then there’s the scenery: ring side seats to Main Street. Turn­ing the ice cream is a 1927 John engine, an expe­ri­ence that will take you back to your child­hood (at least, if you were raised in the Midest). The shop is always mak­ing new fla­vors, but the most pop­u­lar ones are vanil­la, blue­ber­ry, and chocolate.

A brew­pub with a climb­ing wall? Only in Tal­keet­na. The walls are cov­ered with hand­writ­ten sig­na­tures, say­ings, and boo-yah’s of climb­ing teams and any­one else who cares to put pen to wall. You’ll also find climb­ing pic­tures, news pieces, memen­tos cur­rent and his­tor­i­cal, and TVs (it’s the best place in town to watch sports on the tube). The food is just as fun — the restau­rant was fea­tured in ​“Man vs. Food,” show­cas­ing its obscene­ly fatty…  ...more

Pub: Great beer, an ener­getic atmos­phere, and a fun out­door deck are the high­lights of this micro­brew­ery. It’s just a cou­ple years old, but already the great- tast­ing beer — with fun names like Cleopa­tra’s Kiss, Old Mad Dog, Hiber­nale, and Sin­gle Engine Red — is being served through­out the state. Look for the own­ers, Bo and Sas­son: Bo is the brewmeis­ter while Sas­son was a climb­ing guide and pro­fes­sion­al con­trac­tor who turned this for­mer gas…  ...more

Opened in 1923 to accom­mo­date trav­el­ers on the new Alas­ka Rail­road, the small inn found fame (or noto­ri­ety) quick­ly: Pres­i­dent War­ren G. Hard­ing came for lunch, and died just a few days lat­er. Today, the hotel is com­prised of six recent­ly ren­o­vat­ed rooms as well as a bar and live music venue. You’ll hear every­thing from jazz and folk to open mic nights and seri­ous rock-n-roll. At the very least, do a walk-through to enjoy some local col­or and…  ...more

His­to­ry, fun, and mas­sive por­tions of food come togeth­er at this insti­tu­tion, which was built over 3 years start­ing in 1914. Choose from a vari­ety of cozy rooms in the main road­house and wake up the smell of fresh baked goods from the Kitchen in the morn­ing. Or, for a more pri­vate expe­ri­ence, book one of the cab­ins out back or the Muse­um Apart­ment at the end of the block. 

It’s hard to miss this piz­za shop — it’s paint­ed pur­ple on the out­side, with a bright-col­ored abstract paint job inside. But make no mis­take: the focus for own­er Todd Basilone, an Ital­ian who’s fam­i­ly has been in the restau­rant busi­ness for mul­ti­ple gen­er­a­tions, is on the piz­za. The crust isn’t too thin or too thick, and the sauce has a nice spice. And if you like buf­fa­lo wings, you’ll love the buf­fa­lo piz­za. You have oth­er options as well, like…  ...more