229 Parks - Denali National Park

I decided to try this restaurant due to the high reviews I read about it. Unfortunately the food didn't quite meet the mark for me. Their website needs updating. Several months ago when I tried to make reservations for my family and another family, the website said it was open daily from 5 9. After several attempts at trying to email them and call them to make a reservation for a Monday in July, they finally picked up and said they were only open from Fri Sun for the rest of the summer season. So I made a reservation for dinner for tonight. The location is off the side of the highway, but the sign is very faint so it would be easy to miss. The building looks like a home and it's cute and cozy when you enter. We were greeted by a really nice server and she was attentive all evening and emphasized that everything was made from scratch. We were handed our menus and were told that they only have a prix fixe menu for $65. They also have a kids menu for $12 per entree. Our party ordered a variety of items, We also got a basket of complimentary bread which unfortunately was hard and salty. The lemon butter that accompanied it was good though. My kids ordered the grilled chicken with sweet potato fries, and a pepperoni flatbread. These dishes were both so awful, none of my kids wanted to finish them, so I had to help them because I am the family garbage disposal and I hate wasting food. The chicken was super dry and the flatbread was so hard even I had a hard time trying to finish it. The only thing they liked were the fries. Both entrees are 1/5. My husband ordered the Summer Corn Soup to start, King Crab Pasta, and Hoho Cake for dessert, I ordered the Reindeer Street Taco appetizer, Watermelon Salad, and Fresh Alaskan True Cod, and our friend ordered the Alaskan King Crab Cake as his appetizer, Radicchio Blue Cheese salad, and Reindeer Lasagna. While all the food was creative, and the presentation exquisite, the taste was just OK. Summer Corn Soup Nice flavor. 4/5 King Crab Pasta decent flavor and interesting way of presenting pasta. 4/5 Hoho cake Flourless and chocolately! Great way to finish the meal. 5/5 reindeer taco the tortilla was so so so hard, we all had a hard time trying to bite through it. 1/5 Watermelon Salad refreshing and I enjoyed the savory bits they added with the nori. 4/5 Fresh Alaskan True Cod Fish tasted rubbery at the edges. The olive tapenade that was served with it was salty and made me thirsty all night. 3/5 I can't give an opinion on the other items since I didn't try them. My takeaway is that the adult entrees are better than the kids food, but nothing to go out of your way for. Another perk is that they have a second restroom upstairs and a ping pong table there, so the kids kept themselves occupied playing after they ate, while the adults finished our meals and enjoyed our conversation.

I feel in love with 229 Parks when we traveled to Alaska for a vacation in August 2017. I made my triumphant return as an Alaskan resident this past summer, and I am happy to report that I am just as enamored with this restaurant as I was last year. This place is simply divine, and it still sits in my top 2 restaurants in Alaska. It's actually tied for 1st with the Little Mermaid in Homer. I just cannot choose one over the other. The menus has an abundant amount of options using locally sourced Alaska ingredients whenever available. There is something for the meat lover, seafood enthusiast, and vegetarian. I do not think anyone could be disappointed when dining here. Everything is carefully crafted from the complimentary bread to the house made pastries. Laura Cole is a master chef, and a beast in the kitchen. Her menus are innovative, and constantly rotating with what she has available. She has been previously nominated for a James Beard award if you need anymore convincing as to just how amazing she is. I cannot say more good things about the food at this restaurant--please do yourself a favor, and experience it for yourself. This restaurant on its own is 100% worth the drive from Anchorage to the Denali area. But, you also get to see some of Alaska's greatest natural wonders along the way so consider this premier dining opportunity a very treasured bonus. For the locals, 229 Parks does open back up in the winter on the weekends, and I will be making the pilgrimage from Anchorage once it does. The restaurant may seem inconspicuous, but you are certainly in store for an experience when dining here.

Definitely make reservations. At the time I 'm writing this (end of August they 're only open Friday-Sunday and they absolutely fill up. Wonderful overall experience. I went with my 14 year old who deigned to try fried parsnips and duck. She loved both (and for context she 's typically a plain cheeseburger extra ketchup kid . My scallops were cooked perfectly and our server Jill was very helpful in picking a wine. Save room for dessert :

This is the best and my fav restaurant I had around Denali national park. Everything is prepared with so much attention to detail, food is fresh, and every dish had the best combo of sauces paired with the ingredients. Service was also great and our server was Chris. I would come here again in a heart beat!! All the tasty food made my Friday night a great night!!

Is it the best restaurant in the state of Alaska? It just might be, friends. It just might be. This is an easy spot to miss if you 're blazing up the Parks Highway. In fact, I had missed it dozens of times. I just not got around to visiting, in the dead of winter. Yes, that 's right! They are open in the winter (on the weekends) I 'd imagine this places is packed to the gills in the summer, so you 'd probably best have reservations. In the winter, it 's still surprisingly busy. I 've eaten here three times over two weekends in the past...I don 't know...few weeks. High level take aways: Service is fantastic! Ambiance is great: bright with tons of wood and big windows. Maybe a little too bright now that I think of it. Menu is always changing and always interesting! They do dinner quite a bit better than they do brunch I wish they had more interesting things on tap What also impressed me was how reasonable the prices were for Alaska. This is some of the best food in the state and most of the meals are in the mid teens to lower 20 's in price! You can 't eat at those prices in downtown Anchorage, and the food won 't be nearly as fresh! I got grassfed steak and asked to have it prepared like the reindeer (which they were out of), It was spectacular. One of the best steaks I 've ever had. The brunch, like I alluded to, is not as great. It 's still good, mind you, it 's just that the prices are similar to dinner while the portions are dramatically smaller/simpler. Will definitely be back, anytime I 'm in the area! Great spot to go for the weekend to get rid of the Anchorage/winter blahs .