Taste delicious cuisine at these “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives”-approved restaurants in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau, and beyond.
Alaska is known for its wild and rugged peaks, rivers, and wildlife, but did you know it also boasts an array of delicious culinary options?
The beloved show “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” has Guy Fieri traveling all around to explore the restaurants that make each destination unique. Here are some of the Alaska restaurants featured on his show.
Anchorage
Originale
Since 2012, Originale has offered delicious meals in Anchorage with an Italian flair. The family-run restaurant focuses on sandwiches and salads, with offerings like Il Diavolo grilled sandwich with spicy salami, soppressata, spicy coppa, fresh mozzarella, and hokey pokey spicy pepper sauce.
Or opt for the Mamma Mia grilled sandwich with thin-sliced pastrami, fresh mozzarella, and caramelized onions with bell peppers, or enjoy a cold Genovese or a vegetarian caprese panini.
Ray’s Place
Anchorage’s favorite Ray’s Place has served up Vietnamese cuisine since 1993. Enjoy fried egg rolls, seared Saigon tuna, an array of sandwiches like banh mi, and plenty of other options.
Try a Vietnamese chicken salad, or slurp up a big bowl of pho. Choose from a variety of sauteed noodle options, opt for lemongrass steak, tuck into spicy duck, or go for sweet and sour seafood. The extensive menu leaves plenty of options to share.
Seoul Casa
Korean Mexican Fusion is on the menu at Seoul Casa, which offers a bounty of delicious options like nachos, kalbi short ribs, chicken katsu rice plates, seafood pancakes, spicy pork tacos, and bulgogi egg rolls.
Tequila 61
Tequila 61 is a Latin fusion gastrobar on 4th Avenue in Anchorage. The menu boasts “Guy Fieri approved” blueberry duck tacos with peanut chile de arbol, blueberry salsa, pickled onions, cilantro, and guacamole.
Executive Chef Ogün Aksoy showcases a tasty menu, including a brunch selection of items like chicken tortilla soup and carnitas a la Mexicana tacos, and dinner selections like Alaskan king crab, pasion del mar Ahi tuna, New Mexico gnocchi chicken, and portobello chimichurri.
Waffles and What Not
One of Anchorage’s premier Black-owned businesses, Waffles and What Not was founded by Derrick Green in 2016.
Enjoy delicious menu items like the Waffles and What Not Bad Ass Yard Bird (a waffle with chicken strips), the loaded mac and cheese bowl with fried chicken, bacon, and BBQ sauce. Or opt for an assortment of omelets, chicken, and waffle sandwiches like Salty Crazy Uncle, a spicy BBQ waffle sandwich with chicken strips, cheese, and bacon.
Fairbanks
Big Daddy’s BBQ
Grab a delicious bite at Big Daddy’s BBQ in Fairbanks. Try sandwiches like beef brisket, pulled pork, smoked sausage, Texas cheese steak, BBQ sliders, and more.
Hari Om Cuisine of India
Enjoy some mouth-watering food at Hari Om Cuisine of India. Chef Amit Paul’s menu includes the lamb korma and chicken vindaloo featured on “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives,” and the restaurant even shared the chicken vindaloo recipe so avid home chefs can give it a try at home.
The menu also offers an array of vegetarian entrees like dhaba dal, chana masala, karahi paneer, and aloo matar, as well as plenty of meat items with a choice of chicken, lamb, shrimp, fish, and goat when available. You can’t go wrong with the malabar curry, pepper masala, bhuna masala, korma, or biryani.
Hot Licks Homemade Ice Cream
Enjoy an always-evolving menu of ice cream flavors at Hot Licks Homemade Ice Cream.
Taste flavors like lemon blueberry cheesecake, almond, s’more, Turkish coffee, maple, and cinnamon, along with a few soft serve options—which sometimes includes ube—as well as pre-packed pints and non-dairy options.
Jazz Bistro on 4th
Jazz Bistro on 4th features Cuban and Latin cuisine, and jazz music (be sure to check with the restaurant for the specific entertainment schedule).
Executive Chef Rico Zavaleta’s menu includes items like media noche, which is a Cuban hot-pressed sandwich with pork, ham, swiss, and pickles, or try the Bistec Cubano, with thinly cut steak marinated in lemon garlic mojito sauce. Or opt for pollo con cream, lechon asado, salmon Cuban style, or piri chicken, among the many options.
Mein Diner Food Truck
Taste delicious German food at Mein Diner Food Truck. Sample delicious “old world” German food, such as Bavarian pretzels, currywurst, and schnitzel sandwiches, among other incredible food truck offerings.
Salty’s on 2nd
Head to Salty’s on 2nd to support a woman-owned business in downtown Fairbanks. The breakfast menu features blackened salmon benedict, crab cake benedict, omelets, mimosas, and more.
The main menu includes crab stuffed mushrooms, halibut and chips, Louisiana pasta complete with andouille sausage and shrimp, Mama’s meatball sub, and delicious desserts like cheesecake and Marlos Bakery Brownie Bundt.
Silver Gulch Brewing
Head to Silver Gulch Brewing in Fox, which is just 11 miles outside of Fairbanks. The original location was founded in 1998, and it was named for nearby Silver Gulch Spring.
Now there is a second location at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport. Look for the restaurant and brewery in Concourse C.
Sip favorite beers like 40 Below Imperial Stout, Coldfoot Pilsner, or Fairbanks Lager, and enjoy delicious menu items like ale battered onion rings, beer cheese soup, burgers, seafood hush puppies, and Alaska fish and chips. The Fox location offers pizza baked in its brick oven, as well as a seasonal outdoor beer garden in summer.
The Cookie Jar
When The Cookie Jar was founded in 1986, it was a microbakery. Since then, it has evolved and expanded into the full-service restaurant it is today, featuring delicious favorites like a New York steak dinner, chicken alfredo, biscuits and gravy, homemade cherry pie, and more.
The restaurant is especially famous for its calzones, including the beerock (bierock) variety, which involves ground beef, onion, sauerkraut, and cheddar packed into whole wheat dough. Be sure to try the burgers, stromboli, and sandwiches.
Enjoy the all-day breakfast with dishes like country fried steak, waffle platters, omelets, and more. Be sure to leave plenty of room for desserts like Savannah cream cake, pies, cookies, and more.
The Hungry Robot
Focusing on wood-fired pizza, The Hungry Robot serves up a delicious assortment of creative pies. Opt for the Bogan, with sweet BBQ sauce, dry-rubbed shredded pork and chicken, and smoked Gouda, or go for the Burning Bumble Bee, topped with spicy ancho chili-infused honey, sliced and cubed pepperoni, pepperoncini, and other ingredients.
Another great option is the Chick-Piz-A, which includes a honey mustard BBQ sauce, popcorn chicken, and sliced dill pickles. Carnivores will love Murdered by Meat, which includes sweet Italian sausage, ground beef, pepperoni (both sliced and diced), and bacon bits.
Other creative options include the mashed-potato-focused Taters Gonna Tate—topped with cheeses, ranch, and bacon—as well as the Thai Town, which has shredded chicken, peanut sauce, pickled carrots, chopped peanuts, and Thai Sweet Chili sauce on top.
North Pole
Country Cafe
Located on Santa Claus Lane in North Pole, Country Cafe has served up its delicious home-style cooking since 2007, with new owners taking over in 2023. Try breakfast, brunch, and lunch specials like cinnamon roll bread pudding or maple bacon stuffed French toast, in addition to mainstays like omelets and country fried steak.
Elf’s Den Restaurant
On Mistletoe Drive, Elf’s Den Restaurant has an elf-focused logo and a menu featuring items like pizza, steaks, pasta, and sandwiches. Try a calzone, such as the Great Alaskan combo with reindeer sausage, green peppers, onions, and mushrooms.
Pagoda Restaurant
Since 1990, Pagoda Restaurant has served up delicious items like Pagoda roasted duck and Szechuan shrimp. Chef Benny Lin also offers the “Guy’s special” family-style dinner with soup, bang bang shrimp, orange chicken, Mongolian beef, dragon chicken, and pork fried rice, among numerous menu options.
Juneau
Forno Rosso Alaska Pizzeria and Catering
Grab a wood-fired Rein-Beer Pizza with Alaskan Amber white sauce, Indian Valley reindeer sausage, and more at Forno Rosso Alaska Pizzeria and Catering.
Other delicious pizza options with a local flair include snow garden pizza with Alaskan Amber white sauce, Juneau greens, Genovese basil, marinated artichokes, black truffle salt, and more. Or opt for the Denali Pizza with white truffle oil, prosciutto, jalapeños, red onions, and more.
In Bocca al Lupo
In Bocca al Lupo offers “Alaskan food with Italian flavor” and has been in operation since 2016. The restaurant incorporates elements of Alaska Native and Filipino culture in its menu, while using local ingredients like salmon.
Executive Chef Beau Schooler was nominated for the James Beard Award six times, including four times at In Bocca al Lupo. The restaurant highly recommends reservations, and the seasonal menu, which focuses on handmade pasta and wood-fired pizzas, changes frequently, with items such as pork and ricotta meatballs, rigatoni bolognese, and shells and cheese with smoked salmon.
Pucker Wilson’s
Stop by Pucker Wilson’s at locations in the Valley, JACC, and Franklin Street Food Court. Keep an eye on Facebook and Instagram for the latest specials, such as crispy cherrywood smoked pork belly on croissant bread or Nashville hot chicken with smoked habanero hot honey.
V’s Cellar Door
V’s Cellar Door‘s tagline is “uniting the sweet heat of Korea with the bold heat of Mexico,” and its distinctive menu does just that.
Try delicious options like an infused burrito with kimchi rice, Korean cabbage slaw, V’s fusion sauce, and sesame seeds, or a tinga fusion burrito with spicy chicken, chipotles, ranchero sauce, and more. The caramelized kimchi quesadilla is another unforgettable choice.
