ORSO

01/26/09

Best place to eat in Anchorage

by krys29 at Citysearch

It's a great place to eat at, would recommend reservations though mainly on a weekend evening. WAit staff are great, the bar is great, the food is the best we have found so far in Anchorage as far as a nice restuarant. We have eaten there quite a few times and have been impressed every time. I look foward to another dinner out!

• Pros: very relaxing and pleasant
• Cons: parking

12/24/08

Eat the food, feel the love!

by gwaltney53 at Citysearch

This is a great place for people who care about food. The decor is interesting. The staff is knowledgeable but pleasantly unpretentious. The menu is full of fresh seafood prepared in interesting ways. I frequently get the fish special. There are only a few places in Anchorage that show the same level of respect for ingredients as Orso. Fresh fish is usually cooked with very simple preparation and the true flavors are there to enjoy. Don't miss the King salmon when it is in season. Pasta and a very nice steak are also available. As far as I?m concerned however, the fish is the star here. This would be a good place for a birthday or other special event. Expensive but good value for the money. Good wine and bar too.

11/15/08

Great atmosphere, mostly very tasty

by olioli at Citysearch

Things I love about this place:

- you can almost always get a seat in the bar area at night and have a good meal

- funky orange chandeliers, posters, other neat decor. Hip and understated.

- polenta and beef tips, as well as their smoked salmon chowder = best comfort food in town

- decent wines, good dessert wines.

- seasonally changing menu with some local ingredients (! - a feat for Alaska) :)

- friendly and professional waiters. There were some drunk people in there on Sat. night and they offered them to leave in such a charmingly unobtrusive, yet firm way :) Love Orso.

Things I am not that into:

- wild mushroom ravioli leave something to be desired. Chewy, too salty, not very flavorful

- sometimes they are out of a particular wine, with no apologies or offer to substitute much. I think both times this happened, it was late at night, and the waitress was tired.

All in all, not flawless but one of our favorite places. You actually forget it's winter outside when you are in there :D